Siemens announced today the intention of wanting withdraw its presence in Russia. The decision was made in accordance with the maneuvers adopted by other companies and is a declared response to the Kremlin invasion of Ukrainian territories. The company is certain of its choice, but it also promises direct economic consequences.
The friction between Russia and the West pushes Siemens to distance itself
Shell, Exxon, Boeing, Airbus, Apple, Disney, TikTok, McDonald’s, Starbucks, Nokia and many others have already left Russia, now it’s the turn of the German Siemens. The company has ceased all new activities and is gradually starting to downsize its presence in the Moscow area of influence.
«As a company we denounced this war clearly and forcefullySiemens executive Roland Bush told reporters. “As human beings, we are all shaken by war. And the numbers of finance must step aside in the face of the ongoing tragedy. Given this, like many other companies, we feel the impact of what is happening on our business “.
More than two months after the start of the conflict, the position of the tech company will certainly be determined by an ethical impulse, however the factors in the field are more articulated and complex than the manager’s statement suggests. Siemens, like many other tech and digital specialists, has stumbled on a financially underwhelming start to 2022, plus the growing number of Western sanctions in Moscow is making the operation extremely treacherous beyond the new iron curtain.
Siemens’ forecasts for Q2 results are not disastrous, but they are still far below what was originally hoped for, with the result that the company’s shares have shrunk by 5%. The impact of the abandonment of Russia will certainly be felt by the German company, but we are still talking about the1% of proceeds of Siemens, therefore a reduction in turnover of approximately 600 million euros is assumed.
However, the company is far from ending up in the loss. Siemens calculates that 2022 will indeed translate into one revenue growth of 6-8%a modest but present milestone, which is guaranteed by a production that is making extensive use of automation and digital technology.