Oxford Instruments Regulatory News (OXIG)

15 Aug 2007 07:01

Oxford Instruments PLC15 August 2007 15 August 2007 Oxford Instruments plc (the "Company") Interim Management Statement Oxford Instruments plc, the high technology tools and systems company, issues today its first Interim Management Statement which covers the period from 1 April 2007 to 15 August 2007, as required by the UK Listing Authority's Disclosure and Transparency Rules. Financial Position and Performance of the Company Whilst trading to date has been below our expectations our core markets remainrobust and overall, the Board's expectations for the full year remain unchanged.The Analytical businesses' markets remain strong. Over performance in some parts of the business has balanced the softening of the RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) market which we predicted in our Preliminary announcement. In Superconductivity, the businesses have continued to improve with the exception of our MRI businesses which have suffered from a downturn in the end market for MRI machines following the introduction of the Deficit Reduction Act in the US. In both divisions, introduction of new products will accentuate the second half weighting of profits. The continued weakness of the US dollar and Japanese Yen has affected profits in the quarter. To an extent this has been mitigated by the Company's policy of hedging transactional exposure. However in the first quarter the proportion of sales denominated in US dollars has been greater than expected. Save as described in this statement, there has been no significant change in thefinancial position of the Company in the period. Material Events and Transactions On 26 July 2007, we announced the acquisition for £9.3m of WAS, a leading German manufacturer and international supplier of Arc/Spark optical emission instrumentation, used in the analysis of the chemical properties of metals. On 26 June 2007, we announced the creation of an alliance between our wholly owned subsidiary, Oxford Superconducting Technology and Alstom Magnets and Superconductors of Belfort, France (a wholly owned subsidiary of Alstom). The alliance will be focused on winning supply contracts in the European Union for niobium-tin superconducting strand for ITER, a joint international research and development project that aims to demonstrate the scientific and technical feasibility of fusion power. On 4 and 31 July 2007 respectively we announced the completion of the sale of vacant properties at Abingdon and Eynsham, both in the UK. The properties had become surplus to operating requirements following earlier restructuring of our business. At 31 March 2007, the properties were held as assets for sale with a carrying value of £7.0m. The net proceeds of the sale were £7.8m. During the period under review we entered into an agreement with a consortium of banks to provide us with a committed five year Revolving Credit Facility of £50.0m. Calendar We intend to provide an update on trading at the Company's AGM on 25 September2007 and our interim results will be announced on 20 November 2007. Jonathan Flint Chief Executive - Ends - Enquiries: Oxford Instruments plc Tel: 01865 393200Jonathan Flint, Chief ExecutiveKevin Boyd, Group Finance Director Hogarth Partnership Limited Tel: 020 7357 9477Rachel Hirst / Andrew Jaques / Ian Payne This Interim Management Statement is prepared for and addressed only to the Company's shareholders as a whole and to no other person. The Company, its directors, employees, agents or advisers do not accept or assume responsibility to any other person to whom this Interim Management Statement is shown or into whose hands it may come and any such responsibility or liability is expressly disclaimed. Statements contained in this Interim Management Statement are based on the knowledge and information available to the Company's Directors at the date it was prepared and therefore the facts stated and views expressed may change after that date. By their nature, the statements concerning the risks and uncertainties facing the Company in this Interim Management Statement involve uncertainty since future events and circumstances can cause results and developments to differ materially from those anticipated. To the extent that this Interim Management Statement contains any statement dealing with any time after the date of its preparation such statement is merely predictive and speculative as it relates to events and circumstances which are yet to occur. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements. Notes to Editors Oxford Instruments designs, supplies and supports high-technology tools,processes and solutions with a focus on physical science, bioscience,environmental and industrial research and applications. It provides solutionsneeded to advance fundamental nanoscience research and its transfer intocommercial nanotechnology applications. Innovation has been the driving forcebehind Oxford Instruments' growth and success for over 40 years, and itsstrategy is to effect the successful commercialisation of these ideas bybringing them to market in a timely and customer-focused fashion. The first technology business to be spun out from Oxford University over fortyyears ago, Oxford Instruments is now a global company with over 1,300 staffworldwide and a listing on the London Stock Exchange (OXIG). Its objective is tobe the leading provider of new generation tools and systems for the PhysicalScience and Bioscience sectors. This involves the combination of core technologies in areas such as lowtemperature and high magnetic field environments, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance,X-ray electron and optical based metrology, and advanced growth, deposition andetching. Our products, expertise, and ideas address global issues such asenergy, environment, terrorism and health and are part of the next generation oftelecommunications, energy products, environmental measures, security devices,drug discovery and medical advances. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange