Kuehne+Nagel may cut more than 20,000 jobs

Freight-forwarding firm Kuehne+Nagel may layoff over 20,000 jobs, with warehouse workers most affected, because the coronavirus-caused economic condition hits shipping, controlling shareholder Klaus-Michael Kuehne said in an interview.

Kuehne+Nagel, which has 83,000 employees, will probably lay off jobs in locations like the US that unlike some European countries doesn’t have a system of short-time working to fall back on to stop massive layoffs, he told Germany’s Die Welt in an article published on Saturday.

He sees globalization decelerating, with a trend towards regionalisation.

“The group could have 20-25% fewer workers than before the crisis,” he said. “We will emerge from the crisis smaller.”

The 2020 result will surely be bad than 2019, said Kuehne, adding nobody knows how long the crisis will last and how deep it will be. The firm has already scrapped its dividend.

“The moments of truth come in the April to June period,” he said. “Transport volumes have declined significantly. The decisive question is, will the world economy begin a gradual recovery in June.”

Kuehne+Nagel

“I expect that economic production will be lower for years to come,” Kuehne told the newspaper.

China is unlikely to emerge weakened from the crisis, he said, even though it is the origin of the coronavirus, likely in a seafood and Wuhan’s live animal market.

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