Basler, a leading manufacturer of cameras and accessories, reported that incoming orders decreased to €94 million ($102 million) in the first six months of 2023, a decrease of 41% from the same period last year, while sales for the same period were €116.1 million ($126 million), an 11% decrease from the prior year. In its sixth-month report to shareholders, management cited weakened demand from the consumer electronics, logistics, and laboratory automation equipment industries in Asia and North America, as well as a lack of economic recovery in China. “During the shutdown, the boom in consumer electronics and online ordering, as well as the need for vision inspection, led to very large capacity expansions in these industries, resulting in very high demand for capital equipment and vision components,” the management team said. Since mid-2022, the company has experienced a “drastic correction to this extraordinary trend,” according to the report, with Basler noting that many of its customers have seen a sharp increase in inventories due to over-ordering during the chip crisis, lessening the need for capital goods. The company expects continued weak demand in the Asia and the American markets, and it sees increasing signs of recession in Europe, noting that management “no longer expects demand to recover before early 2024,” according to the report. As a result, Basler has implemented a restructuring program that includes a planned workforce reduction of 200 full-time positions in Germany and abroad. For more information, the full six-month report can be found on Basler AG’s website.
