Ladies and Gentlemen,
For the Bosch Group as a whole, 2007 was a successful year. The company’s sales revenue grew in fiscal 2007 by six percent to 46.3 billion euros. After adjusting for currency effects, this growth came to eight percent. This success was due to our corporate strategy of global expansion. All three business sectors – Automotive Technology, Industrial Technology, and Consumer Goods and Building Technology – showed very positive growth. The number of associates working for Bosch around the world has also grown to 271,300. Of these, 159,000 associates work for Bosch outside Germany.
In 2007, Asia Pacific continued to be the driver of Bosch global growth. Seventeen percent of our worldwide sales were generated in this region. By 2015, we intend to triple sales in Asia Pacific by continuing to achieve double-digit sales growth here. To this end, we shall be investing another 1.4 billion euros in Asia Pacific. This will further expand our local presence and bring forth new manufacturing, sales, application, and development centers.
Of all the markets in Asia Pacific, China continued to stand out in fiscal 2007. The 37 legal entities of Bosch China generated consolidated sales of 18.3 billion CNY, up 41 percent on the previous year. All business sectors in China showed strong positive growth. We can now confidently state that growth in China reached a new record level, not only in percentage terms, but also in absolute figures. At the end of 2007, 17,285 associates worked for Bosch China. We thank them wholeheartedly for their outstanding achievements last year.
The Bosch Group continued to invest heavily in research and development in 2007, spending roughly 3.6 billion euros for R&D worldwide. Over 29,000 associates work in this area at the Bosch locations around the world, and last year generated 3,281 patents, an equivalent of 14 patent applications submitted each working day.
Also in China, we stepped up our investments in localized R&D and manufacturing, to allow us to better satisfy local customers and market demands, as well as to contribute to the development of the Chinese automotive industry. By the end of 2007, we had established four automotive engineering centers in China, and we will continue to invest in advanced facilities and in the professional development of highly competent R&D associates. In 2007, we continued our efforts to improve automotive safety by beginning construction of the Bosch Group’s largest winter test facility in Yakeshi, Inner Mongolia. We expect this facility to be available in the fourth quarter of 2008. We also continued to invest in the Consumer Goods and Building Technology business sector. In March 2007, Bosch Power Tools opened its largest training center in Asia Pacific in Hangzhou.
China’s economy will continue to grow in 2008. This will generate grea topportunities for Bosch in China. However, we also have to face the major ecological challenges of dwindling oil supplies and environmental degradation. And we will continue to address the even greater global issue of climate change. At Bosch, we always strive to win both economically and ecologically. More than 40 percent of the Bosch Group’s R&D effort is currently dedicated to products that conserve resources and protect the environment. In China, we are continuing to localize the manufacturing of clean, safe, and energy-saving automotive products and solutions, such as our latest common-rail clean diesel systems, our gasoline direct injection systems, our hybrid vehicle technology systems and our start/stop systems. We are also continuing to localize the manufacturing of wind energy components and resource-saving washing machines. The wide range of innovative and beneficial solutions provided by Bosch Automotive Technology, Industrial Technology, and Consumer Goods and Building Technology will continue to be guided by our ambition to improve the quality of life and thus to remain true to our slogan “Invented for life”.
Last but not least, we take pride in pointing out that Bosch in China looks back on a long and meaningful heritage. Next year, in 2009, we shall be celebrating 100 years of Bosch in China. This will give us opportunity to honor the legacy of our company’s founder Robert Bosch, and to reiterate our commitment not only to sustained business success, but also to our social responsibility wherever we do business. In China, we will continue to be involved in the country’s economic development and to contribute to the building of a harmonious society.
With best regards,
Peter Pang
President
Bosch (China) Investment Ltd.
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Peter Pang
President
Bosch (China) Investment Ltd. |
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