Airbus Industrie Expects Slowdown in Orders

Airbus Industrie said that sales surged to a record $17.2 billion in 2000 and that it won orders for 520 planes worth $41.3 billion--another high for the company. However, the European plane maker said it expected orders to decline to between 350 and 400 jets this year as an economic slowdown in the United States takes hold. Unveiling its commercial results for last year, Airbus said it delivered 311 planes in 2000, up from 294 in 1999. Its share of the market for large commercial aircraft was about 40%. In a year that far exceeded the expectations of Airbus and archrival Boeing Co., the 520 planes ordered came in shy of a record 556 in 1998. The $41.3-billion value of those planes represented a new peak for Airbus, but the company sees that figure falling back to about $37 billion in 2001.