Rolls makes strong progress

At the company’s annual meeting, chief executive Sir John Rose said: “The Group’s increasingly global nature, our access to growing international markets and the scale of our order book all support your Board’s confidence that Rolls-Royce will continue to deliver growth across all four of our business sectors. "2008 has started well. Order intake in the first quarter was worth almost $15 billion. Trading performance in this period is in line with the Board's expectations. The balance sheet and the Group's financial position remain strong. "The high levels of activity in the oil and gas industry are benefiting our marine and energy businesses and current activity in the defence business remains strong. Our civil aerospace business continues to enjoy significant order intake particularly in Asia and the Middle East. However, the credit shortage and increased fuel costs are inevitably putting pressure on the airline industry. "Looking to the future, the breadth and diversity of the Group's products and services, its lack of dependence on any one programme or geographical region and the progress being made with managing costs will help the Group to respond effectively to the unpredictable economic environment. "Current trading is consistent with our expectations that we will grow underlying revenue and profit and generate a positive cash flow in 2008."