Siemens Predicts ‘Rocky Road’ to 2012 Goals as Demand Falls

Siemens AG Chief Financial Officer Joe Kaeser indicated it will be more difficult to meet financial targets set for 2012 as demand tapers off at some industrial automation units and Chinese growth fails to pick up.

“Unfortunately, what we have been seeing in the last eight weeks was that short-cycle businesses are being considerably weaker than we have been originally thinking,” Kaeser said today in an interview in Washington. “It’s going to be quite a rocky road to meet the targets for 2012.”