Friday, March 17, 2000 Record first quarter for Carnival Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL) reported net income of $171.5 million ($0.28 diluted EPS) on revenues of $824.9 million for its first quarter ended February 29, 2000, compared to net income of $157.8 million ($0.26 diluted EPS) on revenues of $748.3 million for the same quarter in 1999. Earnings per share increased 7.7 percent in the first quarter of 2000 versus the same period in 1999. For the first quarter of 2000, revenues increased 10.2 percent over the comparable quarter in 1999. Commenting on the first quarter 2000 results, Carnival Corporation Chairman and CEO Micky Arison said strong revenue growth was a primary catalyst for the growth in earnings. Capacity was up 6.9 percent in the first quarter of 2000 and net revenue yields also increased, primarily as a result of the success of the company's Millennium cruises. Partially offsetting this revenue growth were increases in fuel costs, as well as operational costs related primarily to the Millennium cruises. Arison noted that the company's newest ships, including Carnival Cruise Lines' Carnival Destiny and Carnival Triumph, and Holland America Lines' Rotterdam and Volendam, performed particularly well during the quarter. "It's clear that these innovative new ships provide the kind of vacation products that today's consumers are looking for," Arison noted. Commenting on the outlook for the second quarter, Arison said that softer ticket pricing resulting from slower booking patterns for post-Millennium cruises, together with increased fuel costs, could cause second quarter earnings to be slightly lower than last year. However, the company believes that earnings for the second half of fiscal year 2000 will be stronger and estimates that for the entire fiscal year 2000, earnings will be 8 percent to 10 percent higher than fiscal year 1999. Arison said that he believes the company's long-term growth prospects continue to be excellent. "The fact that we have recently placed orders for two additional ships for Holland America and signed a letter of intent for Cunard's Queen Mary 2, which is expected to be the world's largest passenger vessel, demonstrates our continued belief in the growth of the cruise industry," he noted. On February 28, 2000, Carnival announced that its board of directors authorized the repurchase of up to $1 billion of its common stock. Given the significant decline in its stock price, Carnival believes that purchasing its stock represents a very attractive investment. To date, Carnival has repurchased 6 million shares of its common stock in open market transactions. The company has scheduled a conference call with analysts at 11 a.m. today to discuss its first quarter earnings. This call can be listened to, either live or on a delayed basis, at Carnival Corporation's Web site at www.carnivalcorp.com. Norshipco to cut 15 percent of jobs The Virginian-Pilot reported yesterday that Norshipco plans to lay off 15 percent of its 1,362-person work force -- between 180 and 200 workers -- during the next two weeks after the Navy canceled scheduled work on the submarine drydock Resolute. The Navy notified the Norfolk shipyard in a letter Wednesday that the solicitation for the Resolute job was canceled, says the newspaper. News Index  Marine Log Home page

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