"We have learned a lot in the various supply chain crises and after corona - also to make our supply chains more resilient," said Managing Board member Matthias Rebellius at the Reuters Global Market Forum on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The Red Sea, one of the most important shipping routes from Asia to Europe, is considered too dangerous for many shipping companies following the bombardment of ships by the Houthi rebels in Yemen. They are therefore taking major detours, which are delaying deliveries.

Siemens is monitoring the situation, but is benefiting from its experience and using its own technologies. The Munich-based industrial group has "almost a digital twin" of its supply chains, said Rebellius. "We can simulate different scenarios so we can prepare for them."

Rebellius believes that Siemens is still hardly affected by the weakening economy. The picture varies from industry to industry, but the Group is trying to take advantage of megatrends such as increasing electrification, investments in grids and the integration of renewable energies, said Rebellius, who is responsible for Building and Infrastructure Technology on the Siemens Managing Board. "These are megatrends that are still growing at almost double-digit rates and will continue to do so," he said. In his area, demand for products for the intelligent control of office buildings, for example, has weakened, while areas such as hospitals and data centers are growing.

(Report by John Revill; written by Alexander Hübner, edited by Ralf Banser. If you have any questions, please contact our editorial team at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and the economy) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).