Straumann to cut jobs as Europe sales slow

Straumann posted a 4 percent rise in third-quarter sales to 156.8 million Swiss francs ($167.41 million), compared to an average estimate in a Reuters poll of 158 million.

The dental implant market was hit hard by the financial crisis and has been further hamstrung by the euro zone debt crisis as cash-strapped Europeans worried about the downturn cut back on non-essential dental treatment.

"With our margins reaching unacceptable levels in the first half of the year, we scrutinized our cost structure and determined substantial, balanced resizing measures that will not compromise our growth prospects," Chief Executive Beat Spalinger said.

($1 = 0.9366 Swiss francs)

(Reporting by Caroline Copley)

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