Bombardier has reported second-quarter profits of $23 million (USD), down from $68 million for the same period last year. However, the company also announced a rise in sales of 1.5 per cent to $3.88 billion, which they believe reflects a general upturn in the fortunes of the business jet market.

President and ceo, Paul Tellier said: “We are benefiting from a diverse product line. We capitalized on a significant improvement in the business jet market, which helps meet the challenges in the regional aircraft business, and we will deliver a similar number of aircraft this year as we did last year.”

The company cites deliveries of 29 business jets in the second quarter of 2004, which follows 24 deliveries in the first quarter. This total of 53 is up from 35 for the same period last year.