In October, Mr Lundmark said many customers were looking to large-scale maintenance service outsourcing deals to improve productivity and reduce costs in times of a downturn. He also said several infrastructure segments where the company has a presence are continuing to invest.
“Unfortunately the situation has not become any easier during the first two and a half months of the year and no improvement is currently visible. We have earlier estimated that the new equipment market will decrease clearly in the developed countries and to a lesser extend in the emerging markets, and this development seems to be realising.
“The market for services is more stable than the new equipment market but it seems to be suffering from this situation as well, at least in the short-term. There are quite a few projects in a planning phase globally, for instance in the energy sector, and our offers are on an acceptable level, too. But customers are hesitant and postpone their decisions. Thus, the short term outlook for new orders is unsatisfactory.”
