[lbo-talk] Rockwell Automation eyes $1 bln in China sales

uvj at vsnl.com uvj at vsnl.com
Mon Jul 10 18:03:40 PDT 2006


Reuters.com

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Rockwell Automation eyes $1 bln in China sales http://today.reuters.com/summit/summitarticle.aspx?type=summitNews&summit=ManufacturingSummit06&storyid=2006-05-16T204957Z_01_N16420518_RTRUKOC_0_US-MANUFACTURING-SUMMIT-ROCKWELLAUTO.xml&archived=true&show=all

Tue May 16, 2006

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rockwell Automation Inc. (ROK.N: Quote, Profile, Research) is counting on the rapid development of China's industrial base to drive its sales in that country to $1 billion by 2009.

To generate half its sales outside the United States by that time, Rockwell also aims to build sales to $1.5 billion in Europe, $750 million in Latin America and $500 million in Canada, Rockwell Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Keith Nosbusch said at the Reuters Manufacturing and Transportation Summit in New York.

Milwaukee-based Rockwell makes automation systems that help factories run more smoothly, as well as products used in running oil pipelines, mines and other heavy industrial sites.

"China is a different market for Rockwell Automation because of the evolution of the economy there," Nosbusch said. "The largest percentage of our business in China today is what we would call the infrastructure staples ... the mining industry, the power generation industry, things that are used to build economies and create infrastructure."

Rockwell generated $5 billion in sales in its last fiscal year. Of that volume, 69.5 percent came from the United States and Canada, 16.5 percent from Europe, the Middle East and Africa, 9.7 percent from Asia and 4.4 percent from Latin America.

Overall, the company's fastest growth of late has come in Latin America, with sales rising about 20 percent, driven by investments in the region in mining and consumer-goods manufacturing, Nosbusch said.

"They are trying to spend money to help their economies, to help their population and they see manufacturing as one of the tools and one of the vehicles to be able to improve the standard of living in their region," Nosbusch said.

© Reuters 2006. All Rights Reserved.

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