7 January 2003 - Swiss Engineering group ABB said yesterday it would be delaying the announcement of its annual results by 15 days.

The company has had a difficult 2002 with significant losses emerging from asbestos liabilities arising from its Combustion Engineering subsidiary and has undergone a major debt refinancing and reorganisation.

Preliminary results will now be released on 27 February with the delay being out down to a need to resolve "planning issues". ABB reported record losses last year and appointed Jürgan Dormann as CEO in addition to his role as chairman. The company added that it needed extra time in order to prepare its results carefully, following a series of restructurings.