- Sales: EUR 263 million; down 27 percent year on year; down 7 percent sequentially
- EBIT: minus EUR 42 million (Q2 2008: plus EUR 26 million; Q1 2009: minus EUR 19 million)
- Inventories reduced sharply
1. Q2 fiscal 2009
Due to the sustained global economic crisis, EPCOS’ business development weakened further both year on year and sequentially in the second quarter of fiscal 2009 (January 1 through March 31, 2009). Sales declined to EUR 263 million. All industries served and all regions were affected. Primarily because of the reduction in inventories and lower sales, earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) dropped to minus EUR 42 million.
2. Sales
2.1. Comparison with Q1 2009
| EUR million | Q1 2009 | ± | Q2 2009 |
| Sales | 282 | –7% | 263 |
The industrial electronics sector is now feeling the full impact of the worldwide recession. In the period under review, demand for electronic components thus declined among manufacturers of industrial machinery and systems, as well as manufacturers of energy technology. This development weighed heaviest on EPCOS’ business in Q2 2009.
Sequentially, sales of products for industrial electronics applications fell by 17 percent – the sharpest decline in any of the industries served. Sales to manufacturers of information and communication technology were down by more than 10 percent. Sales of products for use in automotive electronics systems were slightly below the low level of the previous quarter, as were sales to distributors of electronic components.
By contrast, sales of components for consumer electronics applications rose by more than 10 percent. The reason for this increase is that the Chinese joint venture EPCOS Feida went into operation in the quarter under review. EPCOS Feida develops and manufactures power capacitors primarily for use in home appliances.
In all regions, the decline in sales at EPCOS was in the mid-single-digit percentage range.
Sales by business segments
| EUR million | Q1 2009 | ± | Q2 2009 |
| Capacitors and Inductors | 132 | –12% | 116 |
| Ceramic Components | 69 | +3% | 71 |
| SAW Components | 81 | –6% | 76 |
Sales for the Capacitors and Inductors segment decreased by 12 percent to EUR 116 million. This drop essentially reflected the decline in sales to industrial electronics customers, which make up the largest share of this segment’s sales.
While the Ceramic Components segment increased its sales by 3 percent to EUR 71 million, business remained on a very low level. This was due primarily to the persistently weak sales to the automotive electronics industry.
Sales for the Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW) Components segment declined by 6 percent to EUR 76 million, mainly because of weak sales of products for mobile communication applications.
