Kuehne+Nagel, which employs 83,000 people, will likely cut jobs in locations such as the United States that unlike some European countries does not have a system of short-time working to fall back on to prevent massive layoffs, he told Germany’s Die Welt in an article published on Saturday.
He sees globalization slowing, with a trend towards regionalization.
“The group could have 20-25 percent fewer workers than before the crisis,” he said. “We will emerge from the crisis smaller.”
The 2020 result will definitely be worse than a year ago, said Kuehne, adding nobody knows how long the crisis will last and how deep it will be. The company has already scrapped its dividend.
![Klaus Michael Kuehne, CEO of Kuehne+Nagel logistics attends the Bundesliga match between Hamburger SV and Borussia Dortmund at Volksparkstadionin Hamburg, Germany, on Nov. 20, 2015. (Martin Rose/Bongarts/Getty Images)](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fimg.theepochtimes.com%2Fassets%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F05%2F23%2FKlaus-Michael-Kuehne-CEo-of-KuehneNagel-logistics-1-600x338.jpg&w=1200&q=75)
“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?”
“I expect that economic production will be lower for years to come,” Kuehne told the newspaper.