BT Industries, interim report january-june 2002

BT INDUSTRIES, Interim report January - June 2002 Weak economy puts pressure on income - order intake beginning to increase Orders received SEK 6,384 m. (SEK 6,078 m.), rising in the second quarter Sales declined by 8% to SEK 6,090 m. (SEK 6,606 m.) Income after net financial items fell 19%, SEK 360 m. (SEK 442 m.) Economy and demand nearing a turning point Market nearing a turning point The economy in our industry and demand might have reached bottom. Market activity was higher during the second quarter than the first. Global economic conditions remain very uncertain, however. "The second quarter gives us some hope that the market is ready to rebound," says CEO Per Zaunders. "The first quarter was tough, but we are now seeing positive signs of a possible turnaround, including higher orders received. During the first half year BT was also able to strengthen its overall market share." Sales and income Sales declined by 8% compared with the previous year, amounting to SEK 6,090 m. Income fell by 19% to SEK 360 m. "The decrease in shipments this year compared to last year is due to the very high order backlog at the start of last year," says Per Zaunders. "A weakening economy and slow demand throughout 2001, combined with high shipments related partly to orders taken already in year 2000, resulted in a gradual decline in the order backlog." "Lower shipments due to this and lower capacity utilisation at our plants are the main reasons for the decline in income." "As the new President and CEO, but with a long history with BT, I see many challenges looking ahead," BT has grown substantially for many years, profitability has improved and we have gained a world-leading position in our industry. "The restructuring of our industry has been obvious during the last decade. The need for changes is constantly increasing and this is even more evident in periods with weak economy as we have seen for a long period now. Keeping a good profitability therefore requires adjusting costs. To utilise possible synergies, within BT as well as together with our owner Toyota, is one of the major opportunities in our work to increase our cost efficiency. Synergies that can be reached within the existing strategy to work with separate brands and distribution", Mr. Zaunders concludes. The interim report and other press material are available on BT Industries' home page: www.bt-industries.com. For questions and further information, please contact CEO Per Zaunders at +46 142 860 32. For general questions, contact Group Information & PR Coordinator Ingrid Gyhagen at +46 142 865 58 or +46 70 658 34 27. ------------------------------------------------------------ This information was brought to you by Waymaker http://www.waymaker.net The following files are available for download: http://www.waymaker.net/bitonline/2002/08/29/20020829BIT00720/wkr0001.pdf The full report