BAE forecasts strong year

Defence company BAE Systems said it looked forward to “another year of good growth” after reporting 2007 operating profits of £1.48bn (€1.95bn) today.

The 22% improvement came after five months trading from US acquisition Armor Holdings – a major manufacturer of military vehicles and body armour – and strong trading across all the company’s business segments.

Full-year sales were up 14% to £15.71bn (€20.8bn), helping today’s annual profits figure to come in slightly ahead of consensus market expectations.

The company added: “We have excellent forward visibility and a further year of good growth is anticipated in 2008, including a full year contribution from the former Armor Holdings business.”

BAE said its order book stood at £38.6bn (€50.9bn) at the end of 2007, compared with £31.7bn (€41.9bn)a year earlier.