BAE chief Weston quits

JOHN WESTON, chief executive of Britain's biggest manufacturer and exporter BAE Systems, has resigned to 'pursue other interests'. His shock decision wiped £450m off the share price of the aerospace and defence giant with a 14 3/4p fall to 331 1/4p. He is succeeded by 50-year-old Michael Turner, currently chief operating officer.

Weston's departure was announced at the same time as BAE issued a statement saying that trading remained in line with its predictions last month. Then it reported a fall in pre-tax profits to £70m from £179m in the year to December 2001.

Weston climbed to the top of BAE by working through a succession of companies that eventually formed the giant aerospace and defence group. He joined the British Aircraft Corporation in January-1970, having graduated as an engineer from Trinity Hall, Cambridge, with a first-class degree. Two years ago, Weston took on the challenge of integrating the former British Aerospace and GEC businesses into newly-formed BAE Systems.

Controversially, BAE appears to have been sidelined by the creation of the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (Eads) jointly formed by the aerospace industries of France, Germany and Spain.

However, BAE now has the US government as its single biggest customer, replacing Britain's Ministry of Defence. This has led to a surge in US institutional buying of BAE shares that has taken foreign ownership of its equity to above 48%.