Bureau Veritas reported consolidated net sales of 969 M€ in the first half, representing an increase of 8%. Organic growth was 9%, in particular owing to strong growth in the Marine and Industry divisions, a return to growth in the Government Services and International Trade division, and good performance in Certification and Consumer Products.
Consolidated net income, Group share rose significantly (+23%) to 83 M€ in the first half of 2007. This trend mainly reflected a 22 M€ increase in adjusted operating income to 141 M€.
The operating margin was higher than 14% in the first six months, rising 130 basis points, especially as a result of increased productivity in the Construction, Marine, Certification and Consumer Products divisions. Bureau Veritas pursued its investment strategy with, in particular, the acquisition of CCI Holdings in June, thereby enabling Bureau Veritas to double in size in Australia, and the complete takeover of the Spanish firm ECA GLOBAL at the end of August, making Bureau Veritas a leader in Spain in inspection and control.
The latter operation remains subject to the approval of Spanish antitrust authorities.

At 2,096 M€, net sales rose 11%, of which 9% can be attributed to organic growth.
In an environment characterized by strong growth in business, Legrand controlled production costs across the board while investing in its future growth by launching more than 20 new products, strengthening its marketing and sales team and integrating its recent acquisitions.
Adjusted operating income thus increased by 16% and represented an adjusted operating margin of 18.6%. Net income, Group share, more than tripled at 195 M€ versus 63 M€ in the first half of 2006.
In addition, Legrand pursued its external growth strategy with the acquisition at the beginning of the year of HPM (Australia and New Zealand) and UStec (USA), and more recently the acquisition (subject to the approval of the relevant authorities) of Kontaktor, the Russian leader in high-current circuit breakers

In the first half, Materis reported strong growth (+13%) in net sales, which totaled 918 M€. Organic growth was +8% and external growth was +7%.
Adjusted operating income increased by 14%, and the slight rise in the margin to 13.5% was due to the combined effect of the rise in selling prices and gains in productivity, which offset the increase in the price of raw materials and energy, as well as the dilutive impact of acquisitions. Synergies achieved with acquisitions in strong growth areas (India, China, South America) are expected to improve the margin.
In 2007, Materis pursued its acquisition program, taking control of four companies in mortars and paints. Net income from activities totaled 32 M€ in the first half of 2007.

Stallergènes continued to report strong growth in net sales, up 17% to 75 M€. Organic growth also increased by 17%, fueled by the dynamic performance of the company's sublingual allergy treatments. Operating income before research and development increased by 23%, and net income, Group share, by 32% compared with the first half of 2006. Authorization to sell ORALAIR® tablets and the launch of this allergy treatment product are expected by the end of the year, and significant sales and marketing efforts accompany this step forward.

In the first half of 2007, net sales totaled 321 M€, representing organic growth of +1%, a figure above the publishing market average. The operating margin increased by 21% to 15.8 M€. The refinancing negotiated in April 2006 generated a gain in terms of financial expense, which in addition to ongoing cost reductions, contributed to the rise in net income from activities from 1 M€ to 5 M€. Since in publishing, most of the year's net income is concentrated in the second half, this performance does not fully reflect the increase in profitability. Editis pursued its growth through the development of digital activities, e-learning and new acquisitions (De Boeck in the first half and, more recently, Editions Gründ).

In the first half of 2007, net sales totaled 298 M$, with sustained organic growth (+5%) in line with expectations. The new organization based on global divisions (Industry and Aerospace) has been operational since the beginning of the second quarter of 2007, and it serves to launch programs to develop synergies to increase revenues and reduce costs. In the first half of 2007, adjusted operating income (45 M$) was affected by costs linked to the setting up of the central headquarters. The objective of the programs launched is principally to improve the operating margin by approximately 300 basis points by 2009.

At the end of the first half, net sales totaled 154 M€. Organic growth stabilized in the second quarter after a decline of 2% in the first quarter of 2007. Operating income stood at 20 M€, representing a margin of 13%. In the first six months of 2007, the performance of the European market, up 3%, offset the continued lackluster environment in the Asia-Pacific region. The objectives of executive management (the team was bolstered in the second quarter) are to re-establish the conditions for organic growth of approximately 5% and, in the shorter term, to reduce fixed costs to boost the operating margin to more than 15%

Net sales totaled 121 M€, down 11% from the first half of 2006. This change reflected the decrease in the average price of oil in the first half, expressed in euros.
The startup of operations at the Buzzard oil field at the beginning of 2007 will lead to an increase in production in 2007.