ABB's profit fell by less than expected in the third quarter, lifting its shares on Wednesday, although the Swiss engineering company said conditions were weakening in the United States and China, its two biggest markets.
For 2019 as a whole ABB, said it still expected to see "slight revenue growth" with improved profitability as its cost-savings plan came into effect.
ABB said orders turned negative in the United States, while there was a faster drop in new business from China, whose economy grew at its most sluggish pace in more than three decades as the trade war with Washington took its toll.
"Clearly the trade war has some impact on overall conditions," Chief Financial Officer Timo Ihamuotila said, adding that ABB was relatively insulated because its Chinese factories predominantly supplied local customers.
US manufacturing activity has also fallen to its lowest level since 2009 and ABB's US orders fell 1 percent during the third quarter. It said orders from China fell 7 percent, as customers became more cautious.
ABB's robotics arm continued to struggle with orders down 18 percent as customers in the automotive industry, which accounts for around 40 percent of this business, held off buying new machinery.
Overall orders fell 3 percent, while net profit fell to $515 million from $603 million a year earlier, as ABB was hit by lower profit at the Power Grids business it is selling to Japan's Hitachi.
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