This article from NYTimes.com has been sent to you by psa188@xxxxxxxxx /-------------------- advertisement -----------------------\ THE DREAMERS - IN SELECT CITIES FEBRUARY 6 Set against the turbulent political backdrop of 1968 France when the voice of youth was reverberating around Europe, THE DREAMERS is a story of self-discovery as three students test each other to see just how far they will go. "Pure Bertolucci," proclaims The New Yorker. THE DREAMERS makes its North American premiere at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. http://www.foxsearchlight.com/thedreamers/index_nyt.html \----------------------------------------------------------/ Northwest Airlines Beats Expectations January 23, 2004 By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 12:00 p.m. ET MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Northwest Airlines reported a profit for the fourth quarter Friday, but only because the carrier sold off assets and had other one-time gains. For the quarter ended Dec. 31, Northwest reported income of $370 million, or $4.18 per share, in contrast to a loss of $488 million, or $5.68 per share, a year earlier. Operating revenue increased nearly 3 percent to $2.41 billion, from $2.34 billion. The latest profit included gains of $492 million. That included $299 million from the sale of Pinnacle Airlines Corp.; $45 million in gains from the sale of some of Northwest's holdings in discount travel Web sites Hotwire and Orbitz and a debt exchange; and a non-cash gain of $148 million from a transaction involving debt secured by foreign real estate. Without the unusual gains, the nation's fourth largest carrier lost $129 million, or $1.49 a share for the quarter, an improvement from the loss of $178 million, or $2.08 per share, reported a year earlier, excluding unusual items. The results were 10 cents a share better than the consensus $1.59 a share loss estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. But in morning trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market, Northwest shares were down 52 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $13.49. For the full year, Eagan-based Northwest earned $248 million, or $2.74 a share, including unusual gains of $801 million, in contrast to a 2002 loss of $798 million, or $9.32 a share. Revenue rose slightly to $9.51 billion, from $9.49 billion. ``Like the other network airlines, we are reporting our third consecutive year of massive losses from airline operations,'' said Richard Anderson, chief executive. ``During the past three years, Northwest has experienced pretax losses totaling nearly $2.2 billion from airline operations. This financial performance is clearly not sustainable.'' Anderson said Northwest has completed eight rounds of cost reductions since 2001, resulting in $1.6 billion in savings as the company cut virtually all non-labor costs possible. He said Northwest's non-labor cost per available seat mile is lower than all of the other major airlines and several of the low-cost carriers. ``Unfortunately, this is not enough. For Northwest to succeed, we must now reduce our labor costs to competitive levels,'' Anderson said. Northwest has been seeking to reduce its overall labor costs by nearly $1 billion a year, but its unions have been cool to concessions. The union representing pilots has said it would consider concessions if the plan also included some sort of investment by pilots in the airline. The large union representing ground workers has an open contract but is seeking raises. Contracts with flight attendants and mechanics don't open for renewal until 2005, and those unions have declined to start talks early. Anderson reiterated his belief that the airline business has fundamentally changed and said airlines must bring costs in line with revenue expectations. ``Relying on the possibility of a cyclical recovery is futile,'' he said. ``Relying on the sale of assets and other one-time transactions is also not the answer. The airline must produce profits from operations to succeed over the long term.'' ------ On the Net: Northwest Airlines: http://www.nwa.com http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/business/AP-Earns-Northwest-Airlines.html?ex=1075892844&ei=1&en=eccd08f50cc37f4f --------------------------------- Get Home Delivery of The New York Times Newspaper. Imagine reading The New York Times any time & anywhere you like! Leisurely catch up on events & expand your horizons. Enjoy now for 50% off Home Delivery! Click here: http://www.nytimes.com/ads/nytcirc/index.html HOW TO ADVERTISE --------------------------------- For information on advertising in e-mail newsletters or other creative advertising opportunities with The New York Times on the Web, please contact onlinesales@xxxxxxxxxxx or visit our online media kit at http://www.nytimes.com/adinfo For general information about NYTimes.com, write to help@xxxxxxxxxxxx Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company