British industrial gases company BOC has been hit by a decrease in orders from struggling silicon chip manufacturers such as Intel and Samsung. They are buying less of its vacuum gas pumps and it is d…
British industrial gases company BOC has been hit by a decrease in orders from struggling silicon chip manufacturers such as Intel and Samsung. They are buying less of its vacuum gas pumps and it is difficult to tell when things will improve. BOC is, however, seeing strong demand for carbon dioxide, hydrogen and medical gases. It is the biggest supplier of oxygen to hospitals in Britain and also supplies lightweight canisters to people in their homes. The shares rose 22p to 999p in the first week of August as it revealed that it intended to cut 1,500 jobs worldwide, 200 of them in Britain. Underlying pre-tax profits for the third quarter rose 3% to GBP 119 million, at the top end of expectations.