|
8 May
Moscow,
Dow Jones
|
Alcoa Inc. (AA) named its president and chief operating officer, Klaus Kleinfeld, as chief executive to succeed Alain Belda, who will continue as chairman. Before joining Alcoa in August, the 50-years-old Kleinfeld served as president and CEO of German conglomerate Siemens AG (SI). Kleinfeld has been a company director since 2003. "Our election of him to the position of CEO reflects our confidence in him as a truly global leader, capable of continuing to capture the growth opportunities ahead," Belda said. In his two years at the helm of Siemens, Kleinfeld oversaw a revamping of the company’s portfolio of businesses. He won plaudits from investors after taking over in January 2005 and divesting the company of unprofitable businesses. Kleinfeld said in April 2007 that he would leave Siemens after his contract expired that September. The decision came after the company’s nonexecutive supervisory board, the German equivalent of a board of directors, repeatedly stalled on reappointing him as CEO. Despite fetching higher prices for its aluminum, Alcoa — the U.S.'s largest aluminum producer and a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average — posted a 54% drop in first-quarter net income last month and cut its forecast for growth in worldwide primary aluminum consumption this year, citing a dip in North American consumption. It now expects 8.5% growth, down from its previous estimate of more than 9%. While aluminum prices have shot up in the past few months along with other commodities, the company is dealing with a host of other issues — including record energy prices, the weak dollar and a teetering economy in the U.S. | |||