Nolato reports growth in sales and continued stable earnings

In its nine-month interim report for 2006 published today, Nolato reported a 28 percent increase in sales compared to the same period in 2005.

• Sales increased to SEK 2,099 M (1,643)
• Income after financial items increased to SEK 150 M (141)
• Earnings per share increased 12 percent to SEK 4.68 (4.18)

“Nolato’s growth in sales has continued while our earnings trend is stable,” said Georg Brunstam, who is President and CEO of Nolato.

Both Nolato Telecom and Nolato Medical increased their sales sharply compared to the same period in 2005 while Nolato Industrial’s sales were stable.

“The market growth for mobile phones has remained good, which combined with a higher value per delivered unit at Nolato Telecom and greater volumes at Nolato Medical has had a positive impact on sales,” noted Mr. Brunstam.

On October 23, an agreement was signed to acquire the Swedish company Medical Rubber, which is one of Europe’s leading manufacturers of precision components in soft polymer materials for medical devices, a move in line with Nolato Medical’s established expansion strategy.

“The company, which has sales of roughly SEK 100 M, complements Nolato Medical’s current resources extremely well and creates added breadth to our customer offering,” Mr. Brunstam emphasized.

As a result of the mobile phone manufacturer BenQ’s feared insolvency in its German operations, Nolato expects that non-recurring costs on the order of SEK 100 – 125 M will be charged to income in the fourth quarter of 2006.

The complete interim report can be downloaded at www.nolato.com