Clariant sheds 570 more jobs and closes plants
The Swiss specialty chemicals group Clariant says it is cutting about another 570 jobs and is closing sites in France, Britain, Mexico and Germany.
The company, which makes pigments for a wide range of products from textiles to cars, has already announced more than 2,000 job cuts this year in a restructuring programme.
Clariant, which is based near Basel, on Thursday said the aims of the cuts and closures was to "further optimise its global network in order to address overcapacities and to reduce costs".
The company hinted at further cuts, saying it would continue to identify further optimisation potential".
Clariant said in a statement that it expected the present restructuring measures to be completed between 2011 and 2013, with costs of about SFr150 million ($148.1 million).
The company has struggled against falling demand in the economic downturn and lower-cost competition from Asia.
swissinfo.ch and agencies
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.