Munich - German electronics giant Siemens AG said Wednesday that its quarterly profit fell 67 per cent in the wake of extra charges resulting from a review of its order books.

The Munich-based company said net profit in its fiscal second quarter to March dropped to 412 million euros (642.4 million dollars) from 1.3 billion euros a year earlier.

The group said sales edged up by a marginal 0.5 per cent to 18.09 billion euros.

The review of its order books, which followed the discovery of inconsistencies, resulted in additional costs during the quarter of 857 million euros, Siemens said.

In particular, this concerned large projects in its rail, IT and power divisions.

The 160-year-old company, which is in the middle of a major restructuring, is also trying to lay aside a corruption scandal that has badly shaken the group.

On Tuesday, a law firm hired by Siemens to look into the corruption claims had unearthed violations.

Announcing the latest results Wednesday, Siemens said it expects a solid growth in sales this year and for earnings to remain flat.

"Our order growth in the first half has been excellent on a global basis, and our industry and health care sectors combined strong growth with higher earnings," Siemens chief Peter Loescher said. (dpa)