SKF sheds 2,500 jobs as slowdown hits demand

SKF, the world’s biggest bearings producer, will cut 2,500 jobs – 6 per cent of its workforce – in response to a plunge in sales in the fourth quarter, particularly from the struggling auto industry.

The Swedish engineering company forecast sales would fall 15 per cent year-on-year in the fourth quarter, a sharp deterioration from the previous quarter in which it increased sales by 9 per cent. Sales from its auto division will fall by up to 30 per cent, analysts predict.