Rheinmetall overcomes automotive crisis and increases earnings in defence

Rheinmetall AG increased the performance of the Defence sector further and reported positive EBIT of €15 million for fiscal 2009, despite high expenses in the Automotive business as a result of the crisis. Both company sectors achieved better operating results than originally forecast. The company intends to pay its shareholders a dividend of €0.30 per share. The signs are once again clearly pointing towards growth in sales and earnings in both sectors in fiscal 2010: by means of a drastic restructuring program, the company has adapted its Automotive sector to the altered market situation. Growth opportunities are opening up in the Defence sector thanks to a high order backlog and a product portfolio geared towards the deployment requirements of armed forces. Klaus Eberhardt, CEO of Rheinmetall AG: “We have successfully overcome the crisis and lived up to the trust placed in us by our shareholders. Thanks to a huge amount of effort, we have actually achieved better operating results than originally forecast. We intend to return to our previous level of earnings already in this year. The strong Defence sector is still on a profitable growth path, and in Automotive we will directly benefit from a considerably lower break-even point and sector-wide recovery.”