Siemens expects sales growth to slow in 2024 after forecast-beating Q4

Siemens on Thursday gave a more cautious sales outlook for 2024 after the trains to industrial software maker reported fourth-quarter industrial profit ahead of expectations. The German group, whose products are used to automate factories and buildings, said it expected its revenue to grow 4-8 per cent in the next 12 months.

The target marks a slowdown from the 11 per cent revenue increase the German industrial heavyweight posted for its 2023 business year, which ran to the end of September. That is mainly due to muted expectations at Siemens AG's industrial automation division, where sales could grow up to 3 per cent or stagnate. "This is based on the assumption that following destocking by customers, global demand in the automation businesses, especially in China, will pick up again in the second half of the fiscal year," the group said.

During its fourth quarter, Siemens sales rose 10 per cent to 21.4 billion euros ($23.19 billion), beating the 20.99 billion euros forecast in a company-gathered poll of analysts. Industrial profit, too, grew 7 per cent to a record level of 3.4 billion euros, higher than the 3.34 billion euros forecast. "Fiscal 2023 was a year of multiple records: In our Industrial Business, profit and profit margin reached their highest levels ever, and we nearly doubled our net income to a historic high," CEO Roland Busch said.