The Chairman's message - May 2007

Dear Shareholders,

The objectives that we set ourselves for 2006 have been achieved.
In the wake of particularly difficult trading conditions in 2005, and despite an economic context penalised by widespread rises in energy costs and unstable exchange rates, your group returned to operating profitability.

Although it appeared to show a 15.7% increase to €220m, Le Bélier’s turnover displayed actual growth of 6.5%, once a correction is made for the rise in aluminium prices.
Thanks to a significant improvement in productivity, operating profit amounted to €1.7m, compared to a loss of €0.7m in 2005. Net income remained negative but improved by almost €8m to €-3.2m.

This performance is in line with the requirements laid down in the three-year plan at the beginning of 2006, which was set out in detail in the latest shareholders’ letters that we sent you. Among the projects completed over the past year, we should mention the transfer of the Turbo business from Hungary to Serbia, the start-up of automated production in China and the launch of two new machining sites in Hungary and Mexico.

One year after being appointed, the new management team can build on the significant results achieved in Europe and in the foundry sector, and can now concentrate its efforts on the progress still to be made in the machining sector and in the emerging countries. Our research and development work has secured us an order for new suspension and chassis parts, which is the first success that crowns the group’s efforts to reorient its offering towards more highly engineered products. These achievements bring us closer to the strategic model that we have set ourselves and allow us to view the future with confidence.

For 2007, therefore, we have set ourselves the targets of €230m turnover and a substantial improvement in Le Bélier’s profitability.

Confident that our roadmap will deliver success, we vigorously strive every day to achieve robust and sustainable profitability, within a reasonable timeframe. In the meantime, everyone in Le Bélier’s team would like to join me in thanking you, the Shareholders, for your trust and your loyalty.

Philippe Galland,
Chairman and Managing Director