ABB overcomes ‘worst recession in memory’

CEO Joe Hogan said: "By acting quickly and decisively, we delivered a 2009 result well within our profitability target, despite the worst recession in memory. We are in a stronger position today than we were a year ago and have successfully positioned ourselves for growth as the economy recovers. We're encouraged that the year-on-year rate of order decline slowed in the fourth quarter and that base orders were slightly higher than the third quarter of 2009." Hogan said ABB would continue to aggressively pursue growth in emerging markets and opportunities globally to improve industrial productivity, lower energy consumption and tackle climate change. At the same time, the group had expanded its cost savings target to $3 billion to ensure its targeted profitability.