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European Business News 96-07-25
From: The European Business News Server at <http://www.ebn.co.uk/>
Page last updated July 25 10:00 CET
CONTENTS
[01] BT posts slight profit decline
[02] Philips cuts 6000 jobs in wake of poor results
[03] Today's Bundesbank meeting prompts speculation
[04] Britain se to award air-force contracts
[05] EU budget ministers to propose sharp cuts
[06] Commerzbank profits jump 48%
[07] Germany's SAP posts 61% profit jump
[01] BT posts slight profit decline
British Telecommunications has posted a slight decline in pretax
profit for the first half to 869 million pounds, or about 1.3
billion dollars. The telecom attributed the slip to
costs related to layoffs. Those charges more than doubled to
52 million pounds in the period.
Revenue gained 4 percent, primarily because of a rise in sales
of mobile phones and growth in its
overseas operations.
[02] Philips cuts 6000 jobs in wake of poor results
The Dutch electronics giant, Philips, is to cut its workforce
by 6 thousand over the next year and a
half. The downsizing will cost 800
million guilders. The news came during a press conference which
followed the announcemend of a 48 percent drop in Phillip's first
half net profit.
The figure came in at 681 million guilders, or 400
million dollars - around half the amount analysts had forecast.
[03] Today's Bundesbank meeting prompts speculation
The markets are speculating that the Bundesbank will trim its
repurchase rate this morning when it holds its final council
meeting before a four-week summer recess.
The central bank will conduct its regular semi-annual review
of monetary policy and the current
state of the economy. The
repurchase rate has been fixed at 3.3 percent since February.
The discount and lombard rates are
expected to remain unchanged at their current levels of 2.5 percent
and 4.5 precent,respectively.
[04] Britain se to award air-force contracts
Britain is expected today to award air force contracts totaling
3.5 billion pounds, that's 5.4 billion
dollars. The awards are able to proceed now,
following a resolution of a dispute in Prime Minister John Major's
cabinet. The contracts will include
a replacement for the Nimrod reconnaissance aircraft and a new
anti-tank weapon.
[05] EU budget ministers to propose sharp cuts
European Union budget ministers will propose a controversial
plan to slash the union's budget by more
than 2.5 billion dollars. The bulk of the cuts would come
from spending on agriculture and structural aid for the EU's
poorer regions. Agricultural spending
represents roughly half of the budget. The budget talks are more
critical than usual, because 1997 is the year in which countries
will be judged on whether or not they
meet the criteria for joining the planned single European currency.
[06] Commerzbank profits jump 48%
Germany's third largest bank, Commerzbank has reported a 48
percent jump in first half operating profit.
It came in at 1.3 billion marks or million dollars. That's
much higher than analysts had expected. In the same period net
commission income was up 27 percent.
[07] Germany's SAP posts 61% profit jump
The German business software maker S-A-P has posted a 61 percent
jump in first-half operating profit to
374 million Deutsche marks, or 253 million dollars.
Sales rose 38 percent. S-A-P said it expects the remainder of
the year to develop positively.
From the European Business News (EBN) Server at http://www.ebn.co.uk/
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