Following a slight increase in the first half of 2008, global automobile production stagnated and then collapsed in every part of the world in the fourth quarter. For 2008 as a whole, production was down by three percent worldwide, with the U.S. being particularly badly hit. Our Automotive Technology business sector was not able to escape unscathed from this steep downturn. Compared to the previous year, its sales dropped by 6.9 percent to 26.5 billion euros.

At the same time, we also notice a sustained trend toward more eco-friendly vehicles. This reinforces our conviction that products which make driving cleaner, safer, and more economical will be in even greater demand in the future. To make this “Invented for life” technology available in the market, we increased our research and development expenditure once again last year. At some 3.2 billion euros, the 2008 figure was the equivalent of roughly 12 percent of our sales in automotive technology.