Lucent aiming for profits in 2003

TELECOMMUNICATIONS equipment giant Lucent Technologies is still optimistic it will be back in profits by the end of its 2003 financial year. It is sticking to its earlier forecast despite a sharp dip in its fourth quarter results showing a steep increase in losses to 64c a share.

That compares with a 28c loss a share in the same period last year. The group is in the process of a $4bn cost-cutting programme to counter the sharp dip in demand from telecoms suppliers which it began in January, 2001.

Since then it has cut its workforce from over 100,000 to 55,000 and less than two weeks ago it announced a further round of job-shedding involving 10,000 more jobs.

It is not clear if the Irish operations employing 800 in the greater Dublin area will be affected. So far Ireland has escaped virtually unscathed in the jobs fall out.

A spokeswoman said he didn’t know when asked if the latest round of cuts had implications for Ireland.

Orders for telecommunications equipment from global players has dipped dramatically since the sharp downturn in the US economy still struggling to get back to solid growth.

Lucent is the biggest maker of telecoms equipment in the US and blames its difficulties on the sharp drop in capital spending due to the deceleration of the US economy and the hype surrounding the high technology sector that exposed many companies to unsustainable borrowing levels.

Lucent began a major restructuring in January, 2001.

At that time a spokeswoman for Lucent in Ireland said there would be no change here.

Lucent Ireland, which has facilities in Blanchardstown, Cherrywood and Stephen’s Green, has largely escaped the worst of the firm’s job cuts so far.

However, the spokeswoman was unable to give any assurances about the outlook for Irish jobs in the latest shakedown by the company. Since the job cuts began in 2001 the group has cut its workforce from over 100,000 down to 56,000 in the last 18 months.

To date Ireland has escaped the ravages faced by the rest of the group, with only 20 jobs lost.

When the current 10,000 jobs are shed the total workforce will be reduced to 45,000. This is less than half the peak figure of 100,000 plus before the hi-tech sector meltdown.

Uncertainty still hangs over the jobs here and the spokeswoman said she was not in a position to comment about that. The group expects to return to profitability by September 2003.