Rolls-Royce set for 2010 profits increase

29th Jul 2010 07:38

Aero engines developer Rolls-Royce expects 2010 profit to be modestly higher than 2009 after a 'robust performance' in the first half of the year.Group revenue in the six months to 30 June 2010 rose to £5,421m from £5,142m at the interim stage last year.Revenues on an underlying basis increased by 7% to £5,259m. Services revenues increased by 8% to £2,615m on an underlying basis.The group expects underlying revenues to grow by almost 10%in 2010. This includes the benefit of ODIM ASA, which is expected to contribute around £200m to group revenues in 2010.The company reported a £475m loss before tax versus a profit of £2,515m the year before but underlying profit before tax, which excludes the non-cash impact of the hedge book and other financial instruments, rose 4% to £465m from £445m a year earlier.The order book at the end of the reporting period was a record £58.4bn though barely changed from £58.3bn at the end of 2009."We now expect underlying profit for the full-year to be modestly higher than 2009, mainly due to good cost control and a strong trading performance from our Marine business. We expect a modest cash inflow for the year and average net cash balances to remain at a similar level to the first-half," said chief executive Sir John Rose. The interim dividend has been increased by 6.7% to 6.4p from 6p last year.