Airbus posts record 2007 orders

(Reuters) - Airbus confirmed 2007 as a record year for planemakers on Wednesday by posting orders for 1,341 aircraft while boosting cost savings aimed at catching archrival Boeing Co.

Boeing took top spot with 1,413 orders and has suffered less from a weakened dollar than Airbus, which has launched its Power8 cost-savings drive in response.

"These are enormous numbers; it was a staggering year. Now it becomes a question of how we manage the backlog," Airbus chief Tom Enders told journalists.

"Power8 delivered cost savings very considerably ahead of schedule in 2007. The official version is more than 300 million euros; I can tell you it is close to 500 million," he said.

The planemaker aims to cut 10,000 jobs and sell plants to lower its costs. It said it had achieved 30 percent of its planned reduction in overhead positions in 2007, or 3,000 jobs, equally split between Airbus and its suppliers.

Yet despite the reductions achieved mainly through attrition, Airbus still needs to hire production workers and skilled engineers to deliver ambitious new projects.

The overall Airbus headcount of around 55,000 fell slightly in 2007, Chief Operating Officer Fabice Bregier said.

 

Read more at Reuters

Shoprite pockets rise in sales

(Fin24) - Pan-African food retailer Shoprite said sales for December 2007 rose by 16.1% when compared with 2006, which analysts have billed as "pleasing".

The 16.1% increase accounted for both inflation and volume
growth; for the same month, same-store sales grew by 11.7%.

Shoprite says that for the six months to end-December, sales rose by 21.8% to R23.3bn, but notes that the increase should be seen against the three-month strike which took place from August to October 2006, as earnings in thatperiod were affected.

It says like-for-like business in the six-month period
grew by 16.5%.

Nedcor Securities retail analyst Syd Vianello says that
while the numbers were good, the market may be a little disappointed and may have expected more growth given increased social grants, higher food inflation and the perception that Shoprite is taking market share away from Pick n Pay.

Room to fall further

Coronation Fund Managers' food retail analyst Quinton Ivan
says high food inflation - especially in staple foods, which comprise a large part of the Shoprite basket - was beneficial for food retailers' numbers because, despite higher prices, sales volumes do not drop as food is a basic commodity.

Ivan says that while Shoprite is on a heavier rating
(trading on an earnings multiple of 19.3) when compared with Spar (17.6) and Pick n Pay (19.2), its earnings have grown at a faster rate.

Ivan's preference in the food-retail space remains Spar.

Ivan was particularly impressed with the 32.5% growth (20.2% on a like-for-like bases) in Shoprite's African operations. As at end-June 2007 (the most recent figures available), Shoprite had 120 stores in 16 African countries.

Negative overall market sentiment, which saw the all-share index down 3.4% by 13:00 - overshadowed the positive trading update, with Shoprite shares falling 5.4% to 3 700c.

Shoprite's fall was in line with that of fellow food
retailers Pick n Pay (down ) and Spar Group (down 3.6% to 5 300c).

Nedcor Securities retail analyst Syd Vianello says that food retail stocks have, until now, held up well due to them being defensive plays.

Vianello says that while the sell-off presented a buying opportunity, there was room for food retailers to fall further relative to apparel retailers, which have been trading at low price levels.
 

Read more at Fin24

Rand on back foot

(Fin24) - The rand remained on the back foot in late trade on Wednesday amid continuing turmoil in global stock markets with a raft of recent US economic data adding to fears of a
recession in the world's biggest economy.

Dealers added that local data indicating a slowdown in retail sales which supports the argument against another South African rate hike later this month had also contributed to the rand's weakness.

By 15:55 the rand was bid at R6.9210 to the dollar from its previous close of R6.8050. It was bid at R10.2638 to the euro from a previous R10.1070 and at R13.6167 against sterling from R13.1853 before.

The euro was bid at $1.4805 from $1.4780 overnight, while gold was quoted at $890.75 a troy ounce from its previous close of $889.10/oz.

 

Read more at Fin24