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This week's global news
Profits slump by half at Levi-Strauss
Profits have more than halved at jeans manufacturer Levi Strauss. The San Francisco-based company’s first quarter profits were only $29.6m (£20.7m) compared with $65.2m (£45.6m) in the corresponding period last year. Sales declined by 8 per cent. Levi is among a number of clothing retailers, including Gap and Nike (see below), which have experienced poor results recently.
Earnings at Nike slide after shoe sales slip
Sports clothing giant Nike has reported that its earnings are down by a third. The US-based company’s first quarter profits announcement coincided with a 15 per cent decline in sales of sports shoes in America. The group’s net income fell from $145m (£101.5m) to $97m (£67.9m), or from 52 cents per share to 35 cents. Nike had predicted last month that profits would be down by between 34 and 38 per cent.
Airbus stakeholder to axe 1,500 jobs
The European Aeronautic Defence and Space company, which has a 80 per cent stake in Airbus, is to cut 1,500 jobs through restructuring. Four divisions are being created, covering missiles, defence electronics, services and telecommunications to help reduce dependence on the commercial jet market. Most of the jobs will go in the French space unit and others from Germany.
Enodis staff fall victim to shrinking market
UK food equipment maker Enodis is to cut 900 jobs, mainly from its operations in the US. Enodis has been struggling because most of its products are sold to the US where the market for food equipment has shrunk by 10 per cent. Its shares were down 33 per cent in pre-trading on the stock market and chief executive David Williams has resigned. Enodis said the economic climate had worsened considerably since the start of the year, particularly in North America, which accounted for 77 per cent of the food equipment operating profit in the financial year to September 2000. www.enodis.co.uk
