Agresso results show weakened UK market
Financial software supplier says UK is a tough market, and has spent 1 million Euros on trying to establish online services in the USA.
Unit 4 Agresso has released its first half year results which show a total
revenue decline of 2%. This equates to 187.1m Euros (£164.6m) a drop from 190.5m
Euros in the first half of 2008.
The company has said results are in line with expectation and shows that
revenues from contracts (maintenance and subscriptions), rose by 11% to 88.2m
Euros compared with 79.7m Euros in H1 2008.
A statement by the company said: ‘The poor worldwide economic climate
continues to affect licence income and although companies are showing interest
in efficient operating software, decision-making processes have been extended by
a reluctance to invest at present.’
‘As a results licence earnings decreased by 21%. However June saw a
strengthening in licence earnings not only by Agresso Business World but also
from the CODA products and the Benelux solutions, which is encouraging,’ it
added.
Agresso blamed the decline in revenue on the UK market, stating: ‘The
capacity cutback in the United Kingdom was largely responsible for a revenue
decline of 4%.’
The company also hinted that the market was tough in Germany with revenues
from the country down 4% on the same period last year. The company made large
investments into the German markets in 2008 and hopes the numbers will rise in
the second half of the year due to a number of orders in the pipeline.
The CEO also announced Agresso has spent 1m Euros in the first half of the
year to establish its Coda2Go, online software service, in the USA. It acquired
the UK company, Coda, in 2008 which produces Coda2Go and is largely aimed at
offering accounting technology to the public sector.
Chris Ouwinga, Agresso CEO, said: ‘Economic circumstances continue to make it
very difficult to predict market demand for the whole of 2009.
‘In 2009, Unit 4 Agresso is also concentrating on internal measures such as
achieving synergies through cost economies and restructuring. Meanwhile,
restructuring measures have also been taken in risk areas such as Spain and the
United Kingdom.’
Further reading:
Agresso reports drop in licences