EADS boosts revenues

August 9, 2001 Posted: 0824 GMT

LONDON (CNN) -- Europe's No. 1 aerospace company EADS said first-half revenue grew 33 percent as it changed the way it accounts for airliner maker Airbus.

The European Aeronautics, Defence and Space Company (EADS) said sales increased to 14 billion ($12.4 billion) from 10.6 billion in the same six months of 2000.

The company now includes 100 percent of Airbus's sales in its books, compared with 80 percent last year, although Britain's BAE Systems (BA) still owns 20 percent of Airbus.

"The increase is mainly attributable to the full consolidation of Airbus since the beginning of the year and to the aircraft manufacturer's strong order intake," the company said.

EADS, which was created by the merger of Aerospatiale Matra of France, Germany's DaimlerChrysler Aerospace and Casa of Spain, confirmed its forecast of 20 percent revenue growth for the full year, helped by the strength of the dollar.

EADS also claimed on Thursday to have overtaken rival Boeing (BA: Research, Estimates) as the world's No.1 aerospace company in terms of order backlog, which amounted to 185 billion, equivalent to six years of business. In terms of revenues, though, the European company said it remained number No. 2.

Orders received in the six months to June 30 rose to 42.8 billion from 24 billion a year ago, the company said, including 38 firm orders for the Airbus superjumbo.

That's as Airbus said on Tuesday it had cut its target for 2003 deliveries to 400 planes from a previous goal of 450. Airbus also admitted for the first time that it was discussing delivery delays with a number of airlines.

Carriers on both sides of the Atlantic have been stung in recent months by weaker economic growth and a fall in high-margin corporate travel, which has been particularly hard hit as struggling companies cut costs.

"The prospects for EADS continue to be sound as we build a very positive outlook for growth in revenues and earnings by reinforcing an already extremely strong position in terms of our order backlog,"  joint chief executives Philippe Camus and Rainer Hertrich said in a statement.

In addition to manufacturing commercial airlines at Toulouse, France-based Airbus, EADS makes Eurofighter warplanes, helicopters and missiles and holds a stake in the Ariane space rocket business.

The worst performing part of the business was space, where EADS said revenue fell 3 percent to 1.05 billion and order intake plunged 56 percent to 651 million.

EADS shares (PEAD) rose 2.1 percent to 21.55 in Paris after the statement was released.

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