Drop in taxes helps BAE do better than expected
Defence giant BAE Systems expects to do better than expected after its tax bill dropp ed, offsetting p o or exchange rates.
The company said underlying earnings per share are expected to be slightly higher than had been previously forecast.
It said the business has s e e n g o o d o p e r a t i o n a l performance, and is now expecting orders to be above its pre-covid predictions.
BAE had forecast a decline in earnings per share in the mid-single digits, but the performance now means this will be better, it said. S h a r e s r o s e 1 . 2% o n t h e news.
The company said in a statement: "Demand for our capabilities remains high with order intake expectations for the group ahead of our original pre-covid planning for the year."
The business has b een boosted by a decision by German MPS to approve a 5.4 billion euros (£4.8 billion) deal to buy 38 new Eurofighter Typhoon jets, which are made by a consortium including BAE and Airbus.
Chief executive Charles Woodburn said: "We have continued to deliver a resilient performance in line with our expectations for a strong second half, thanks to the outstanding efforts of our employees in these challenging times.
"F r o m a p o s i t i o n o f strength, the actions we t o o k i n q u a r t e r t wo t o enhance our resilience are working well as reflected in our guidance, ensuring we continue to deliver on our customer priorities, whilst keeping our employees safe.
"Demand remains high a n d w e r e c o g n i s e o u r role not only in suppor ting national security, but also in contributing to the e co n o mi e s o f t h e c o u ntries in which we operate."