Xaar plc (“Xaar”), the ink jet printing technology group headquartered in Cambridge, has announced its preliminary audited results for the year ended 31 December 2000. Record results take Xaar towards its goal of becoming a leading player in the global digital printing and imaging industry. Turnover jumped 50% to £22.7m (1999 : £15.1m). Profits before tax rose more than fivefold to a record £2.7m (1999 : £0.5m) and basic earnings per shareincreased more than tenfold to 4.1p (1999 : 0.4p). Strong cash flow resulted in an increase in cash to £8.0m (1999 : £4.2m) after providing for sustained R&D expenditure and capital investment. The balance of Xaar’s business is changing with ink jet printhead manufacturing contributing nearly 70% of group turnover. Manufacturing revenues increased by 50% on a like-for-like basis. Major technology licences sold during the year include Sharp Corporation (Japan) and Xaar’s first US licensee. Continued progress is being made in the collaborative development of the next-generation page wide printing arrays. On outlook, Chairman, Arie Rosenfeld stated : “We have created a fast-growing, profitable manufacturing business which complements the activities that exploit our technology through licensing. Xaar has many of the key ingredients for long term growth and success: proprietary technology, large addressable markets, a clear business strategy, high calibre people and world-class business partners.”