* Will work hard to achieve double-digit cost reduction in 2009 in China

* Chinese sales revenue contribution to the company will rise from 12% to higher

* The company's largest factory in the world is put into production in China in June

Cummins, a diesel engine manufacturer in the United States, said on Tuesday that the company is actively trying to reduce the cost of the Chinese region by more than 10% in 2009, after the company said that its global profit dropped sharply.

Cummins’s global profit for the first quarter announced in April this year dropped sharply by 96% to only $7 million, as the global economic recession hit sales of diesel engines and parts.

At that time, the company also predicted that the global economy or its market conditions could be improved within this year.

John Watkins, CEO of Cummins China Investment Co., Ltd., told Reuters, "It's really nice that I can be in China."

Watkins said that Cummins has focused on meeting the rapidly growing needs of its customers over the past decade, but with the global economic slowdown, it should shift its focus to cutting costs and increasing efficiency.

"We are now more focused on cutting costs," he said. "The goal in China is to achieve a double-digit reduction."

Watkins also said that Cummins has identified some areas that can cut costs and improve efficiency, but will not achieve cost reduction targets through layoffs.

He also said that although China's sales this year are expected to decline, but the rate is much smaller than the company's overall situation.

Watkins revealed that sales in China will actually increase its contribution to the company's revenue from 12% in 2008.

The company will build four factories in China this year, one of which will become its largest plant in the world after the engine has an annual capacity of 400,000 units.