Boeing\'s profits up 21 % in 2011

The Chicago-based aircraft manufacturer Boeing announced on Wednesday that it had made strong gains in 2011, posting a net income of 4 billion U.S. dollars and a record-breaking yearly revenue total of 68.7 billion U.S. dollars. Boeing\'s yearly totals in 2011 came after strong successes in the fourth quarter, and the quarter\'s earnings from operations up 45 percent over the same period in 2010 with a total of 1.59 billion U.S. dollars. \"Strong fourth-quarter operating performance, record revenue and backlog, and expanded earnings and cash flow capped a year of substantial progress for Boeing in 2011,\" Boeing CEO Jim McNerney said in a statement. According to Boeing, the company\'s earnings per share increased 20 percent to 5.34 U.S. dollars in 2011 and revenue guidance for 2012 has been set between 78 billion and 80 billion U.S. dollars. \"Our priorities for the year are to continue with disciplined increases in production rates for our commercial airplane customers, and to build on our strong position in defense, space and security with aggressive pursuit of growth in core, adjacent and international markets,\" McNerney said of Boeing\'s future business plan. A notable source of Boeing\'s 2011 revenue was also based on its record-breaking 356 billion U.S. dollars in backlog orders, which includes over 800 orders for its new Dreamliner 787 model that is made of composite materials. In addition to the new model\'s popularity, slow production and repeated delays have also affected the significant Dreamliner backlog, even prompting some airlines to cancel their orders for the aircraft. However, the Dreamliner and other commercial airplanes were not the only cause for Boeing\'s increased backlog funds, as the world\' s second-largest airplane manufacturer also reported that backlog for its Defense, Space & Security divisions was 60 billion U.S. dollars.