People & Bottom Line

Bottom Line

• TNT Ltd has posted an equity accounted interim profit of $26. 8m for the six months to 31 December, a sharp fall from $83. 28m for the same period 1989. Operating revenue rose from $2. 3bn to $2. 48bn during the six months. A foreign exchange loss of $22. 5m was incurred, while the Gulf War forced TNT to post an extraordinary after tax loss of $443,000, the result of having to close down Gulf operations, particularly the lucrative Kuwait sector. British Airways has announced pre tax profits of £340m ($A850m) for the nine months to 31 December 1990, up 3% on the same period last year. Pre tax profit for the third quarter, however, was. down £51m ($A127. 5m) to £20m ($A50m), following a 20% drop in traffic since the start

of the Gulf War. The airline has warned of a substantial operating loss in the final three months of the UK financial year. Boeing has reported sales of $US27. 595bn and net earnings of $US1 385bn for 1990, up from sales of $US20. 276bn and $US973m net income in 1989. 1990 orders were 543 jet transports and 30 Dash 8s, deliveries were 385 jet transports and 64 Dash 8s. Order backlog at year’s end stood at $US97. 2bn.

Cessna reported sales of $US715. 7m in 1990, up from $US600. 9m during 1989. Operating earnings of SUS106. 1m increased from SUS76m in 1989. Of 171 aircraft delivered. 101 were Citation jets which accounted for 59% of worldwide sales of aircraft in its class. Total combined Citation and Caravan. order backlog stood at 266 at year’s end. Lockheed has recorded 1990 net earnings of SUS335m, a massive rise from $US2m net profit of 1989 when substantial losses were incurred on several projects. Sales during 1990 were $US9. 96bn (up just 1% on 1989), 87% to US government, 5% to foreign governments and 8% to commercial customers. Northrop has reported a net. income of $US210. 4m in 1990 compared with a net loss of SUS80. 5m in 1989. Sales. during 1990 totalled $US5. 49bn, up from SUS5. 25bn in 1989. The company’s funded backlog at year’s end stood at a record SUS8. 7bn. Net debt has been reduced 30% from $US1. 12bn to $US777m.