Hedging & Debt Information

To assist debt and fixed income investors to better evaluate the risk of any given investment, the capital market uses the publicly available independent assessments of rating agencies. Through regular discussions with the senior management of companies, rating agencies gain an insight into the strategy and planning of the companies that they rate. Using this information as a base, supplemented by quantitative analysis, rating agencies evaluate the creditworthiness of the issuer companies through a system of rating classifications. Companies which want to raise money in the capital markets in the form of bonds, commercial paper and other debt instruments normally need a minimum of one or, better, two ratings.

The leading international rating agencies are Standard & Poor's, Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings.

The higher the rating classification is, the smaller is the potential risk that a company cannot meet its debt obligations (interest and principal). The debt investor charges a higher rate of interest for financing a higher risk. Thus a company with a strong rating can raise capital more advantageously than a company which has a less favourable rating. Additionally, the outlook given by a rating agency provides a supplementary reference point for the investor in assessing the probable development of the rating.

The FX Global Code is a voluntary code of conduct having been developed in a joint effort between major central banks and private sector market participants (one of them being Airbus) on a global scale in order to restore trust and to ensure integrity, fairness, liquidity, transparency and effective functioning of the foreign exchange market. Due to its business model and in order to protect its activities from currency fluctuations, Airbus maintains a significant portfolio of foreign exchange hedges. Airbus is therefore committed to the FX Global Code and has already previously been acting in accordance with its leading principles and will continue to do so.

Airbus sees adherence to the code as a way to demonstrate towards its stakeholders compliant behaviours in the context of a wider ethics and compliance framework.

Read more on the Global Foreign Exchange Committee website.

Airbus Finance B.V. (previously Airbus Group Finance B.V.), an Airbus subsidiary, the activity of which is to raise funds by issuance of debt securities to finance activities of Airbus, releases its financial statements for the year end and half-year frequently. These announcements are made to comply with the requirements of the EU Transparency Directive.

In addition to historical information, this website includes forward-looking statements. For further information, please refer to the Safe Harbour Statement.