Cummins plans to cut 1,500 jobs by end of 2012

COLUMBUS, Ind. -- Indiana-based engine maker Cummins Inc. plans to cut as many as 1,500 jobs by the end of the year.

Cummins CEO Tom Linebarger said in a statement Tuesday that the company made the decision because of "uncertainty regarding the direction of the global economy." He didn't say where the job cuts would be made.

Cummins employs about 44,000 people worldwide. The Columbus-based company has factories in Indiana, Minnesota, New Mexico and North Carolina, and several overseas.

Last month, the company said it had instituted a global hiring freeze after a recent drop in sales in markets in North America, China and Brazil.

The company says it earned $1.85 billion on sales of $18 billion in 2011.

Shares fell about 4 percent in after-hours trading on the New York Stock Exchange.