Overview
- Zeiss published half-year results on Tuesday showing group revenue rose about 1% to €5.84 billion and EBIT was €955 million while the semiconductor and EUV optics unit grew 6% to €2.6 billion.
- Management reported weaker demand in Brillenglas, medical technology, microscopy and metrology with microscopy and metrology down about 3% to €1.1 billion and med tech down about 7% to €1.2 billion.
- The board has launched a multi-year savings and restructuring program targeting several hundred million euros in cuts and has not ruled out job losses.
- CEO Andreas Pecher said the move responds to an inefficient cost base built up during past growth, growing dependence on the cyclical chip market, and external pressures such as geopolitical conflicts, currency effects and trade barriers.
- Concrete measures and the scale and timing of any staff reductions will be negotiated with employee representatives in the coming months, and the outcome will shape Zeiss’s investment capacity and risk exposure tied to EUV work with partners like ASML and Trumpf.