Three month report January - March 1999

Three month report January-March 1999: Good growth and a positive margin trend Revenues amounted to SEK 4,915 M (5,208). For present structure this represented an increase by 10%. Earnings after financial items amounted to SEK 267 M (for comparative period 1998: SEK 424 M incl. non-recurring items). Continued good development for Renal Care Services, Renal Care Products and Blood Component Technology. Stable development in Cardiovascular Care. Major restructuring and efficiency improvement program launched in January 1999. Covers mainly Renal Care Products, where initial actions have included reorganization, manufacturing consolidation and product development initiatives. Positive margin and earnings trend. For further information please contact: Bengt Modéer, Senior Vice President, Corporate Communications, +46-8-613 65 00, +46-70-513 65 33 Lars Granlöf, Vice President, Corporate Finance, +46-8-613 65 00 Anna Augustson, European Investor Relations Manager, +46-8-613 65 00 Tim Schoenberg, Vice President, US Investor Relations Manager, +1-949-425-2185 ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/04/23/19990423BIT00020/bit0001.doc The full report http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/04/23/19990423BIT00020/bit0002.pdf The full report