Siemens posted solid second-quarter results despite geopolitical uncertainty and economic headwinds, with strength in its digital industries business helping offset weaker profits elsewhere.
Net profit fell 8% year-on-year to €2.2 billion ($2.58 billion) in the January-March quarter, the German engineering group said on Wednesday, partly reflecting the absence of a one-off gain recorded a year earlier.
Revenue was broadly stable at €19.8 billion despite a divestment, while new orders rose 11% to €24.1 billion. Negative currency effects weighed on the figures, Siemens said, reducing order growth by 7 percentage points and revenue growth by 6 percentage points.
The company's Digital Industries division continued to recover after a prolonged downturn linked partly to elevated customer inventories. Profit at the unit rose to €857 million from €634 million a year earlier.
Digital Industries, Siemens' factory-automation and industrial software arm and once its most profitable division, had previously announced thousands of job cuts in its automation business.
Smart Infrastructure again contributed the largest share of earnings, although profit there fell 20% to €1.1 billion. The prior-year comparison benefited from a positive one-off effect worth more than €300 million.
"We delivered a successful second quarter despite the geopolitical environment, which remains very demanding," chief executive Roland Busch said in a statement.
Siemens recently raised its outlook for the current financial year and confirmed that guidance on Wednesday.
Chief financial officer Veronika Bienert also announced a new share buyback programme worth up to €6 billion over the next five years.
