TRW posts loss, sees 25 percent drop in 2009 sales

The company also said it would step up restructuring actions, including job cuts and facility closures, in response to the deep industry downturn after slashing 10,000 positions last year, or 13 percent of its global workforce.

From automakers to their parts suppliers and dealership groups, the slump in vehicle sales to levels unseen in more than 25 years has prompted job cuts, plant closures and decreases in capital spending.

Economic weakness drove U.S. light-vehicle sales down 18 percent to 13.2 million units last year, and analysts and executives have forecast a further decline to as low as 10 million units for 2009.

TRW, which produces safety equipment such as airbags and electronic stability controls, reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $946 million, or $9.35 per share, compared with a year-earlier net profit of $56 million, or 55 cents per share.

Excluding one-time items, TRW lost 73 cents per share in the quarter, vs. a profit of 59 cents a year earlier.

Sales fell 28 percent to $2.8 billion.

TRW expects 2009 sales of $10.9 billion to $11.3 billion, down from $15 billion last year.

First-quarter sales could drop about 41 percent to $2.4 billion, the company said.

Auto parts suppliers have come under intense pressure from tight credit conditions and from a prolonged downturn in consumer demand that has prompted major automakers to slash output.

TRW expects industrywide vehicle production volumes to decline 50 percent in North America and 40 percent in Western Europe in the first quarter.

(Reporting by Soyoung Kim; Editing by Steve Orlofsky and Lisa Von Ahn)