Iran war impact: Siemens CEO says energy prices are critical
Siemens CEO Roland Busch says the ongoing conflict in Iran is making customers rethink big investments, especially as raw material and energy prices keep climbing.
"Growth is throttled because of price increases," he shared at the Siemens Tech Summit in Beijing.
Customers holding back on investments
With the war disrupting shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a route that handles 20% of the world's oil and LNG — energy costs have shot up.
Brent crude prices have jumped 56% since fighting began, making industries like oil and gas put new projects on hold.
Busch said customers are holding back on investments, citing oil and gas as an example.
Siemens to continue using Chinese AI models
Even with these challenges, Siemens announced it's teaming up further with Alibaba to roll out 26 new AI-driven services for infrastructure and automation.
Busch did mention some worries about data sharing due to intellectual property rules in China, but said Siemens still favors using affordable Chinese open-source AI models like Qwen and DeepSeek.