Flight International Top 100 August 2008

August 2008

2008 marks the 100th year of publishing for Flight International and the third year of PricewaterhouseCoopers association with the Top 100 list.

Key observations from the 2008 report include: 

• The industry’s biggest 100 manufacturers saw margins and revenue soar during 2007 - 2008. But the rosy across-the-board figures hide some deeper concerns.
• The world’s largest 100 manufacturers’ revenues increased by 13% and profits by a massive 26% (compared with equivalent growth rates of 12% and 8% respectively in 2006, and 8% and 17% the previous year).
• Average operating margins of almost 9.4% in 2007 were the highest they have been since the previous peak in 2000.
• The reason for the upswing in revenues has been bulging orderbooks, with OEMs and their supply chains enjoying near-unprecedented demand for their end products.
• However, with manufacturers struggling to hit some of their delivery schedules last year, there were signs that the wheels on a seemingly unstoppable aerospace wagon were starting to wobble.