2,000 jobs lost as Marconi bosses resign

Marconi's chairman and chief executive have resigned after the struggling telecoms equipment maker issued its second profit warning…

Marconi's chairman and chief executive have resigned after the struggling telecoms equipment maker issued its second profit warning in two months and cut a further 2,000 jobs.

The British company said it suffered a first-quarter operating loss of £227 million sterling and would not break even in the first half as it predicted in its previous warning in early July.

Another 2,000 people will lose their jobs following a fresh round of cost-cutting, taking the job cuts toll this year to 10,000 - from 39,000 employed last March.

Chairman Mr Roger Hurn and chief executive Mr George Simpson resigned with immediate effect. Mr Mike Parton, head of the company's networks division, was appointed chief executive. Mr Derek Bonham was named interim chairman.

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Marconi shares rose 5 per cent to 56-3/4p after initially falling to a new low of 50p.

The new chief executive's main task would be to prune costs and hope for a recovery in Marconi's main optical transmissions business, said one London fund manager.

The announcement followed a further deterioration in sales and an operational review launched in July at an angry annual shareholders' meeting.

The company said first-quarter sales fell 12 per cent to £1.13 billion, with a slump of more than 25 per cent in the core networks business.