Embraer believes that it is on course to return to profits this year, after showing its first gains for six years in the final two quarters of 1996.
The Brazilian aircraft manufacturer, privatised two years ago, still ended 1996 with losses of $40 million, but that marked a major turnaround from the previous losses, which had mounted to more than $300 million in each of the previous two years.
President Maurício Botelho points to modest profits in the second two quarters of 1996, which he says should translate into "full profitability"for 1997 as the company continues to keep down costs and improve balance sheets.
The recovery should be helped by rising deliveries of the EMB-145 50-seat regional jet, which achieved some impact in 1996, helping nudge sales up by 14%, to $414.6 million.
Since privatisation at the end of 1994, Botelho says, the workforce has been cut by more than one-third, to 3,850, while lead times on the EMB-120 Brasilia have been slashed from 15 months to eight. The company has also raised $120 million in new capital over the past two years.
Source: Flight International
