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Seagate to close Singapore hard-disk plant, 2,000 face sack SINGAPORE, Aug 4 (AFP) Aug 04, 2009 US-based Seagate Technology said Tuesday it will close its hard-disk drive manufacturing plant in Singapore by the end of next year and lay off about half of its 4,000 workers. The firm said in a statement it plans to move production to existing sites in other countries to cut costs. "This consolidation is necessary in order for Seagate to further increase efficiency and reduce costs by leveraging investments across fewer manufacturing sites," the statement said. The company said it is looking at moving some employees from the hard disk plant to other Singapore operations, while those who are laid off "will be offered severance benefits, in keeping with company policy." Despite the closure of the hard disk plant, Seagate said its product development and design centre and recording media plant will remain in Singapore. The two facilities employ more than 5,300 workers, according to the company website. "Singapore will remain a key strategic partner for Seagate, with focus on high-value activities, and Seagate will continue to make strategic investments here," the statement said. Last month, Seagate reported a loss of 81 million US dollars for the fourth quarter and a full-year loss of 3.1 billion dollars. "While there are signs of improved visibility, the ongoing uncertainty in global economic conditions makes it difficult to predict product demand and other related matters," the firm said in its business outlook.
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