Except for employment and military exports, the aerospace industry ended 2003 on a positive note. Profits rose 75% to nearly $3 billion in the 4th quarter alone on a 10% increase in sales. This is the fourth quarter in a row that profits have increased after the industry posted a loss in the fourth quarter of 2002. Foreign sales increased on the strength of civil exports, which grew by $2 billion or 20%, despite the decline in military exports. New orders, on the other hand, increased strongly--up 34% during the quarter. Unfortunately, employment, which has been steadily falling since 9-11, continued its decline.

In Billions of Current Dollars	4Q 2003	3Q 2003	% Change 3Q03 to 4Q03	4Q 2002	2003 Year-End	2002 Year-End
Aerospace Sales	$43.31	$39.44	9.8%	$42.14	$160.66	$159.58
Profits	$2.94	$1.67	75.4%	-$0.33	$7.02	$6.55
Orders	$42.58	$31.90	33.5%	$35.71	$147.44	$139.72
Exports--Total	$14.24	$12.35	15.3%	$13.99	$52.50	$56.78
Exports--Civil	$12.35	$10.26	20.4%	$11.57	$44.06	$47.35
Exports--Military	$1.89	$2.09	-9.7%	$2.42	$8.44	$9.43
Employment (in thousands)	575	577	-0.4%	604	575	559

For more information about AIA's Statistics, please contact stats@aia-aerospace.org.