DHL 2002 Annual Report Download - page 32

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The FINANCIAL SERVICES Corporate Division generated growth of 19.0% for a
profit of €621 million. Overall, the profit from operating activities developed more
positively than our projections during the year.
The return on sales based on EBITA fell to 6.2% (previous year: 7.6%). This
decrease is directly related to the decline in the return on sales in the MAIL Corporate
Division. Some of the other Corporate Divisions significantly improved their return
on sales. Currency effects lowered the profit from operating activities (EBITA) by
€26 million. In the “Postbank at equity” scenario, the return on sales experienced
an even sharper decline to 1.7% (previous year: 7.8%). While the reversal of negative
goodwill at Postbank was disclosed under other operating income in the Group’s
income statement, this transaction was reflected in net financial income in the
“Postbank at equity” scenario. As a result, the profit from operating activities (EBITA)
in the “Postbank at equity” scenario was lower than the Group’s EBITA (see also the
Postbank at equity income statement). For this reason, the return on sales in the
“Postbank at equity” scenario fell more sharply than did the figure for the Group.
Goodwill amortization increased to €449 million (previous year: €171 million)
due to an impairment loss of €205 million and the first-time consolidation of DHL.
Net finance costs improved to €116 million (previous year: €229 million).
This is due particularly to the increase in net income from associates, which was still
burdened by DHL’s negative result in fiscal year 2001. The Group managed to generate
a profit from ordinary activities that, at €1,856 million, was 13.6% below the prior-
year level (€2,147 million).
The return on equity based on net profit before taxes declined from 45.9% to
35.5%. In the “Postbank at equity” scenario, this figure fell by 12.6 percentage points
to 30.4%.
The low tax expense ratio is primarily the result of a decreased reduction in tax
loss carryforwards, largely due to the decline in Deutsche Post AG’s taxable profit.
At €1,590 million, our net profit for the period before minority interest and
extraordinary expense remained at the prior-year level (€1,587 million). Consolidated
net profit was impacted by the provision of €907 million that we recognized as an
extraordinary expense as a result of the European Commission’s state aid ruling. This
meant that consolidated net profit including minority interest fell by €918 million year-
on-year to €659 million. At the same time, earnings per share decreased from €1.42
to €0.59. Earnings per share before extraordinary expense – adjusted for the effect of
the state aid ruling – amounted to €1.41 and were thus at the prior-year level (€1.42).
MAIL achieves expected return on sales
In an overall troubled economic environment, Deutsche Post World Net’s MAIL
Corporate Division generated revenue of €11,666 million, which corresponded to
only a slight year-on-year decrease of 0.4%. This included a 1.2% decline in revenue
in the Mail Communication Business Division to €7,280 million (previous year:
€7,367 million). By intensifying our focus on the needs of our business customers, we
generated higher sales in this segment despite the economic headwind. In contrast,
31
Management Report
Business Developments