The main trends in sales during the first quarter were as follows:
The lower sales figure is primarily accounted for by Prepress Solutions activities: sales here fell by 25.9%. Digital Printing Solutions sales fell by 10.5%.
Turnover from equipment sales were down 20.8% on their 2011 level; recurring income from consumables and service activities was down 11.4%.
This development does not come as a surprise to the group and is almost entirely due to the so‑called DRUPA effect: a fall in equipment orders that typically precedes the four-yearly graphics trade fair, which is held in May. This particularly affected Prepress Solutions activities.

The decrease in recurring income is mainly attributable to the loss of print volumes at certain customers in North America. In other regions, recurring income remained stable.

In geographical terms, the sales decrease took place in Europe (-17.3%) and America (-21.1%), whereas sales in Asia rose by 36.2%.
DRUPA

In May, Xeikon took part in DRUPA, the world’s most prestigious graphics trade fair. This provided a platform for the official market introduction of new products.

For Digital Printing Solutions, Xeikon launched the Xeikon 8500, the Xeikon 8600, and the Xeikon 8800, targeting the commercial printing segment, and the Xeikon 3030 for labels & packaging. Xeikon also launched Trillium, a new technology that makes printing possible at six times the speed of digital presses currently sold on the market. Xeikon expects that it will take a few more years before this technology can be commercialized. For Prepress Solutions, basysPrint introduced its new generation of UV platesetters, the series 460x and 860x, as well as UV platesetters for very large formats (VLF). ThermoflexX also presented its new product line to the public.

Xeikon’s participation at DRUPA has been a total success. For both Digital Printing Solutions and Prepress Solutions, it recorded a substantial number of orders for over 23 million euros, or more than 40% of the group’s equipment sales reported for 2011, thereby exceeding the targets it had set itself before the start of the event. The revenue from these orders will mainly affect the results in the second half of 2012.

Prospects
The group does not wish to announce any concrete objectives.

General Meeting of Shareholders

The General Meeting of Shareholders will be held at the company’s offices at Brieversstraat 70, 4529 GZ Eede, The Netherlands, at 11 am on Tuesday 30 May 2012.

Purchase of treasury shares
The management has decided to make use of the authority granted to it to purchase treasury shares. Under this authority, the management is empowered to purchase treasury shares up to the maximum quantity that may be vested in the company by virtue of the law and the articles of association at the time of acquisition, at a price between their par value and 110% of the stock-market price at the time of acquisition. In its quarterly trading updates, the company will report periodically on the number of treasury shares purchased and the average acquisition price. At the end of April 2012, the company had purchased a total of 3,032,752 Xeikon shares at an average price of EUR 2.67. This represents 10.56% of the total number of shares outstanding.

Financial calendar
Annual General Meeting 30 May 2012
Publication of half-year results 2012 28 August 2012

Trading update third quarter 2012

12 November 2012

Publication of full-year results 2012

28 February 2013

Annual report 2012 available

18 April 2013