Against the background of slowing global economic growth, ThyssenKrupp maintained its course in the 1st half of 2007/2008. As expected, order intake and sales matched the strong prior-year levels, while profits were higher than anticipated. The Group’s earnings before taxes reached €1,388 million. They were impacted in particular by pre-operating costs of €128 million for the construction of the new steel mills and restructuring expense of €10 million in the Steel segment as well as gains on disposals of €27 million. Before these nonrecurring items, earnings would have been €1,499 million. The Group’s earnings were lower than a year earlier, mainly due to the drastic decline in stainless steel prices. Executive Board Chairman Dr. Ekkehard Schulz: “We continue to forecast earnings before taxes – before nonrecurring items including pre-operating expense for the steel mills in Brazil and the USA – of over €3 billion. Based on the current situation we expect to achieve sales of €53 billion.”

The highlights for the 1st half of 2007/2008 were as follows:
･ Order intake was level with the previous year at €27.4 billion.

･ 1st half sales were virtually unchanged against the prior-year period at €25.5 billion.

･ EBITDA was €2,280 million, compared with €2,538 million a year earlier.
･ 1st half earnings before taxes decreased from €1,634 million in the prior year to €1,388 million.

･ Earnings per share rose from €1.76 to €1.85.

･ Net financial liabilities at March 31, 2008 were €1,988 million, an increase of €2,211 million compared with September 30, 2007, when we reported net financial receivables of €223 million. On March 31, 2007, net financial liabilities stood at €897 million.
The highlights for the 2nd quarter of 2007/2008 were as follows:
･ Order intake at €14.1 billion was up slightly from the prior year (€14.0 billion).

･ At €13.2 billion, sales were higher than a year earlier (€13.1 billion).

･ EBITDA was €1,197 million, an improvement of 16% on the previous year (€1,031 million).

･ Earnings before taxes were €742 million, compared with €572 million in the 2nd quarter 2006/2007. Before major nonrecurring items, EBT would have been €784 million.

･ Earnings per share rose from €0.45 to €1.
The mid-term sales target for ThyssenKrupp is €60 billion, while our mid-term goal for sustainable earnings before taxes and nonrecurring items is €4 billion. In the longer term, especially after the startup of the steel mills of Steel and Stainless in North America and the investments of the other segments in other regions, we expect to achieve sales of around €65 billion and earnings before taxes and nonrecurring items of €4.5 to 5.0 billion.

Online and downloadable versions of the full interim report are available in German and English at http://www.thyssenkrupp.com.