INDUSTRIAL conglomerate Siemens AG said yesterday it would cut 16,750 jobs, or about 4.2 percent of its global work force - mostly administrative-related positions - to streamline its operations in the face of a slowing economy.

The Munich-based maker of products ranging from light bulbs and medical equipment to high-speed trains and power turbines said the cuts included restructuring projects at its various units. Worldwide, the company employs about 400,000 people.

Siemens said it would consolidate its businesses from its 1,800 separate legal entities to fewer than 1,000 and take its 70 regional companies and transform them into 20 regional clusters.

"The speed at which business is changing worldwide has increased considerably, and we're orienting Siemens accordingly," said Chief Executive Peter Loescher in a statement announcing the cuts, which had first been raised last month.

"Against the backdrop of a slowing economy, we have to become more efficient."

Shares of Siemens were up 1.3 percent to 70.29 euros (US$110.31) in Frankfurt trading after the announcement.

Loescher said Siemens was conferring with unions and labor representatives on the matter and that it wanted to make the changes rapidly.

"We want to begin negotiations with the employee representatives quickly in order to make the cuts in a way that will be as socially responsible as possible," Chief Financial Officer Siegfried Russwurm said. "Only as a last resort will we terminate employment contracts for operation reasons."

Siemens said 5,250 jobs will be cut in Germany - with operations in Erlangen, Munich, Nuremberg and Berlin bearing the brunt of the cuts. Siemens employs about 136,000 workers in Germany. The company said the cuts were in an effort to reduce total costs by 1.2 billion euros by 2010.