Ladies and Gentlemen,

Once again it is a great pleasure for me to welcome the international press to one of the most prestigious cities in Europe and the one where our company was founded. And yet again this morning I thank each one of you for having accepted this invitation to our annual meeting. The whole of my team and I are particularly aware of this level of interest and the loyalty shown to our group. Please also allow me to welcome in particular your French journalist colleagues who are here on home territory and who are joining us this morning. Thank you all for coming.

Traditionally, the purpose of this meeting is to take stock of our company, of what has happened over the last financial year, the accounts and our projects.

At his stage of my presentation, I have one thought in particular for you journalists, who have to explain the economic situation and business matters to the market players and the public at large. This work has become extraordinarily difficult, to the extent that in this field the news is anything but heartening : just one year ago, in fact on 3 March 2003 precisely, my evaluation of the 2003 financial year was that it would be somewhat negative or at the least, restrained. A year later, and I can effectively confirm that we have not had a spectacular year – neither in the economy as a whole nor in the travellers sector and rental cars in particular. Consumers’ reluctance to spend money may, in certain countries, even be described as a true recession, the impact of which has been felt in all the service sectors. The direct consequence for our business has been a significant downturn in bookings, both corporate and private, resulting in a reduction in international, then national, and even local, tariffs.

And yet, against this particularly dreary background, which has affected us all, you see before you a happy company and a happy Managing Director.

Our company is the proof that, by knowing what is coming and by setting clear and realistic objectives, it is possible to do well and achieve the aim we set : to become the most profitable company in the European market.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have tremendous news for you today : by increasing its before tax profits by 40 %, Europcar International has become the European leader in its branch of activity. And yet, spectacular as this announcement is, it isn’t actually a surprise. You may recall that this is exactly what we predicted three years ago, two years ago and then again last year. Those who were with us back then will certainly still remember it. We wanted it, we predicted it and we achieved it. The important thing about this news is that it is the consequence of stable and long-term measures and that it marks a significant change in our profession : today Europcar International is the European leader in car rentals. Today, this position gives even more significance to our company’s name.

You don’t change a winning strategy : so we are going in the same direction, whilst not forgetting that, having taken the lead, every one of our competitors will do all they can to catch us up. This is our new challenge, to stay the leader in our profession.

So that you can understand this better, just let me run through some aspects of the economic events of 2003.

2003 has been a difficult year. The economy in the industrialised countries slowed down considerably during the year. As I said just now, we might even call it a recession. This trend became even more noticeable at the end of the year with the on-going risks from the war in Iraq. And that comes on top of two previous years of weakness and economic instability.

The accumulated effect of all the instability factors (situation in the Middle East, the fear of attacks of all kinds, the SARS epidemic …) has had a major impact on the leisure and business travel sectors. Europcar has not escaped this trend but the impact was less severe for Europcar than for our main competitors who are affected more by the North American market and the dollar. The drop in turnover may be as high as 30 % for bookings originating in North America whereas it is under 10% for the Europcar group.

At this stage, I think it is important to underline the fact that Europcar is ready to handle a reversal of this trend, particularly if the economy picks up, leading to business people and holidaymakers again travelling from the United States.

In order to deal with the risks associated with economic ups and downs, Europcar has implemented a diversification plan for dealing with any cyclical losses. This explains the large number of new products or services we have launched in our different markets.

Although the extent of monetary fluctuations has been considerable, the impact in the end was fairly insignificant for the Europcar group. This is true not just because of the strong rise in the Euro but equally because of the fall in the dollar and the pound sterling.

National markets have been cleansed to some extent by the number of bankruptcies affecting car rental companies, both local and national. This situation has allowed us to recover many of their clients, thanks to our ability to react quickly. In this respect, we were able to exploit the strength of our long-term network strategy successfully, thus improving our profitability. All these elements coming together at the same time meant that we have increased our market share.

In addition, our systematic expansion strategy for the networks in central and South America and eastern Europe meant that we were able to compensate for the slowdown in the traditional sectors, thus making a significant contribution to the positive results.

These 2003 results will be presented to you by Gerhard Noack, our financial director. But before he does, I should like to underline the extraordinary dynamism of our teams in 2003, who managed to record a 7 % growth in rental figures in, whilst the market as a whole was at a standstill. Finally, the other item of satisfaction lies in the continuing increase in our turnover, acquired thanks to the private sector.

Thank you for listening. I shall now hand you over to Gerhard Noack who will explain the results of the Europcar group in 2003.

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Statement of Mr. Gerhard NOACK, Chief Financial Officer of Europcar Group
(Complete Text for the Presentation of the Accounts for the 2003 Financial Year)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Our CEO, Mr Catania, has already told you of the satisfaction we feel at the end of this 2003 financial year, which promised to be so difficult. For my part, I have the rare privilege for a financial director of being able to give you only good news about the details of our accounts.

I’d like to start, obviously, with the essentials : the results of the Europcar group from its car rental activities.
Pre-tax result: € 72 m. +40 % (+20.7 € m)
Net result: € 83 m. +65 % (+32.7 € m)

Progress in these last three years has been spectacular, as the pre-tax result has gone from 2.5 % of revenue to 6.5 % at the end of 2003.

The figures speak for themselves and we can leave it to you to compare them with those of our main competitors .

Before dealing in detail with the breakdown of our result, I would like to comment on the net result which has turned out to be higher by more than € 10 m than the pre-tax result. This is unusual and can only be explained by the use of a carried-forward deficit from previous years and the fiscal consolidation of the Europcar group.

It is the last amount which will appear in the accounts of the group’s principal shareholder, Volkswagen AG, whose accounts will be presented to the press in the next few days.

With results like these, our comments could stop there. However, we should like to say a little about the structure of the accounts, to confirm that these results come from a healthy and solid organisation and that we have every hope they will continue in the future.

1) The turnover
The group turnover at the end of 2003 amounted to € 1,105 m (one billion one hundred and five million), which constitutes a growth of 1.7 % compared to the previous year. This growth is almost unbelievable for a period of such global difficulty in the car rental market.

1.1. The turnover by country
There has been no notable change in the contribution each country makes to the group’s international turnover. Germany and France together make up almost 60 % of the activity but recent developments in these countries have been somewhat different.
There has been growth in turnover in almost all the countries.
The UK, France, Spain and Portugal have made positive and significant contributions to growth.
Thanks to the efforts of the principal countries, mainly the tourist ones, the LEISURE sector has seen significant development which now allows us to compensate for the difficulties in other areas of activity. This means that LEISURE revenue now counts for almost half of our business.
The partnerships have played a huge role in these tourist destinations. This has certainly been the case with the two new and important agreements (TUI and easyJet), which symbolise our strategy to conquer the LEISURE market segment.
In Germany, growth has just about managed to compensate for the downturn in the economy.
In 2003, Italy saw a drop in the price of new cars, caused in particular by the crisis within the main Italian constructor. This development led to people buying cars rather than renting them. This fairly general phenomenon was also felt at Europcar, which recorded a drop in turnover because of this movement in the automobile market.

1.2. The structure of turnover
The structure of turnover is determined by the interplay between two principal factors : the number of days’ rental and the rental price per day :
- The number of days’ rental has increased by 3.8 % compared to last year.
- The rental price per day, the usual consequence of the stagnation in the market, went down by 1.8 % compared to last year. We think that this development is not yet over and we cannot see how, eventually, Europcar will be able to escape seeing a fall in its gross profit margin.
Overall, our 1.7% growth in turnover is due essentially to the rise in the number of days’ rental, which has compensated for the lowering of tariffs because of the slump. This very positive development is what makes the real difference between us and the competition who mostly suffer from negative effects under both headings.

1.3.The role of the franchise countries
Europcar has been able to continue expanding its world-wide franchise network : Canada, Indonesia, Malaysia and new partners in the new countries of the European Union thus add to the regional availability for our customers.
The fees from franchisees and royalties on the turnover in 2003 amounted to € 30.5 m, this sum being up by almost 19%. International activities have been even more encouraging than in the 7 countries making up our group and we are delighted at the fact.

2.) Development of costs
We must remember that the effect of the slow-down in sales of new vehicles was to increase the pressure on the price of cars. This pressure also had positive effects on our charges. Fleet costs allowed us to make savings of € 21 m in 2003, which represents 2.3 points of revenue. By contrast, this drop in the price of new cars will have very negative effects on the used car market. However, this effect will be limited in our case, as our policy is to buy most of our cars under "buy-back" contracts.
Our operating costs are closely linked to the number of rentals (+ 6.3%) and the number of days’ rental (+ 3.8%). The effect on our operating costs was only 4.7% in the end. This increase included the increase in commission paid to corporate clients and the continuing rise since 2001 in automobile civil responsibility insurance costs.
The increase in staffing costs is partially linked to the very slight increase in numbers of only 1%. This performance is good when compared to the growth in the number of rentals, which for the same period is 6.3%. The 6% improvement in global activity (number of rentals per employee, per month) is perfect proof of the efficiency of our organisation.
The other significant aspect of the 2003 financial year was the drop in interest payments, which have worked very much in our favour. As almost all the cash-flow requirements were short-term, we were able to take advantage of the low interest rates : this too constitutes more than one point to the improvement in our profitability.
This makes the source of the € 20 m improvement in our pre-tax result perfectly clear. The two main factors can still be pursued positively in 2004 if we succeed in exerting substantial pressure on our charges.

3.) Development of the balance sheet structure
The balance sheet total is up by € 140 m
Obviously, most of the assets are made up of what we call "rental assets" or the "rental fleet". This item takes the value of the car fleet into account. This fleet comprises first of all cars which are being rented, which has seen its value rise by € 44 m in 2003. The other part of the fleet is made up of cars withdrawn from rental and going back to the constructors or dealers. It is the receivables linked to these car sales which, for the most part, constitute the basis for the growth in the balance sheet, as "trade receivables" have increased from € 755 m to € 863 m.
The increase in activity, which may be estimated at € 90 m if the assets for the 2002 and 2003 financial years are compared, was wholly financed from the company’s own equity. With this new breakdown of liabilities, Europcar has considerably increased the solidity of its balance sheet, with equity capital now representing about 10% of the total.

4.) Prospects for 2004
In 2003 Europcar achieved all its objectives both in terms of market position and profitability.
Mr Catania said quite clearly in his presentation : you don’t change a winning strategy. As far as we are concerned, the route is clear : we shall continue with our efforts.
- We shall continue to develop the commercial partnerships which will ensure that we have a business which will be on-going whatever the situation
- We shall continue to launch new products and services to meet the needs of each country
- We shall pursue our franchise strategy into an ever greater number of flourishing countries
- We shall maintain our pressure on improving productivity so that, wherever they are, our customers will benefit from a more efficient and more human service.

Our new position as the leader of the European market gives us, should we need it, the proof that development and profitability are not contradictory terms. We are now convinced that our policy of offering our customers a quality service has been an important factor in the improvement in our profitability. It has also meant a significant growth in turnover by our being recognised by an ever increasing number of partners and customers making use of our services.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for listening.

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Statement of Mr Salvatore CATANIA, Chief Executive Officer of Europcar Group
Strategy and Objectives for 2004 (2nd part of the conference)

My thanks to Mr Gerhard Noack for explaining things so clearly.

I would now like to outline our prospects for 2004, together with our projects.

The challenge for Europcar in 2004 promises to be a difficult one. For the time being there is nothing to suggest any great upswing in economic activity, in Europe at any rate. Competition between the major rental car companies will certainly not be any less and in fact we fully expect it to intensify.

Nevertheless, we think that yet again Europcar will do well and profit from a number of opportunities in the market.

First of all, let me remind you of the main strategies adopted by our group which may to a certain extent explain its success :

1) Our constant search for partnerships
From a starting point of acknowledged competence in the field of car rental, Europcar has progressively expanded its area of activity by becoming a truly international provider of mobility services. We have gone down the route of important partnerships with the airlines, rail operators, hotel groups, automobile clubs and breakdown services.
To illustrate this strategy, allow me to remind you of the important agreements which link us to TUI, the Accor group and finally to easyJet, where an agreement has just been signed and about which I would like to say a few words : this is an exclusive partnership, which means that each time an easyJet customer asks for a rental car, they will automatically be offered a Europcar vehicle. This is an important choice, because it sits firmly within a strategy which states that Europcar, as the new leading car rental company in Europe, wishes to set up partnerships with the number "ones" in each field. This is the case with TUI and Accor and now also with easyJet which is not only the number 1 low cost airline but also one of the largest European airlines.

2) Europcar will continue to provide a multi-brand range
When considering car rental activity, it is natural to be concerned about the sources of car supply. In our case, we have always paid great attention to achieving a good balance in our car purchase sources. Obviously, Europcar International benefits from a certain advantage when new Volkswagen models are launched. However, the close links with our parent company do not prevent our group from being a multi-brand group which can offer its customers a wide range of vehicles.

3) A constantly developing network
To date, Europcar has a direct presence in 7 countries and in 116 others in the form of franchises. These are the two pillars of its organisation. The franchise system plays an essential role in the growth of market share and in enhancing profits. As you already know, in 2003 revenue from the group’s franchises went up by 19% compared to last year, which is considerable.

Armed with these three organisational strongpoints (the development of partnerships, diversification of brands to choose from and building up our franchise network), we have set three essential objectives for 2004 :

1. To increase car rental turnover by more than the average in the market.
2. To give priority to the quality of our service through the "Global Quality Service" programme.
3. To be the best performer in the European market.

If you will allow me, I shall give you a few details of these three objectives :

1) First objective : to increase our turnover
We are going to continue our policy of segmentation, which means that we shall have a presence in all the active segments of our profession. The products and services we offer will be adapted to these target areas, by taking the specific requirements of the different countries into account. We shall obviously be concentrating on the "leisure" sector. The reason for wishing to have a presence in all the segments with great potential is to generate additional income whilst improving our performance in internal productivity.
The purpose of these segmentation decisions is also to rationalise management of costs better. Just as we do with the partnerships, where the effects of improving the "costs of acquiring new customers" are perfectly well known.

2) Second objective : the "Global Quality Service" programme
In periods of crisis, many industrialists forget, for lack of means, "customer loyalty" which has been so fashionable in these last few years. For Europcar, things are clear : these periods represent real opportunities for investment, in the sense of improving customer relations, where quality is a constant objective. That is the reasoning behind our "Global Quality Service". We know that by implementing this programme we are building up a good level of reserves so that we can improve productivity for the future. In short then, we plan to maintain a two-figure growth, even if the economic background is uncertain.

3) Third objective : to remain the best European car rental company
As I said at the time of the Press Conference in 2003, Europcar’s position at that time was no more than one point behind the European market leader.

At the start of this conference, I announced that the former leader had just lost first place in the European market – to us. We know perfectly well that there are many companies laying claim to this place but only by imagining all sorts of variations in the definitions (turnover, size of fleet, number of days’ rental, profits …). We have always refused to comment on these often fantasy figures.

As a function of our analysis of the various parameters from our competitors such as, for example, income, before tax profits, the size of the fleet, the number of desks, Europcar has been the number 1 in Europe since the second quarter of 2003. This new position was confirmed in the analysis of the results for the last quarter which were recently made known by the former leader.

Our three-year plan which was to take us to European leadership has thus been achieved exactly as planned and with success. This has not been achieved by chance. It is the result of a methodology applied in line with our medium and long-term strategy. We are now going to do all we can to maintain this status and put clear water between us and our competitors.

This number ONE figure is a tremendous reward for us for all the effort made by all our national organisations and our franchisees. In addition, Europcar has officially been awarded the title of "European Car Rental Leader " by the "World Travel Awards" and that of the "Best Car Rental Company in Europe" by the readers of the Business Traveller Magazine. These 2 nominations are proof of the appreciation felt by thousands of customers and travel agents and reflect the quality of service delivered each day by our teams.

These titles are the supreme rewards from a critical and demanding international clientele. It is an honour, but also a responsibility for all the Europcar teams. We shall not forget it.

It is not difficult to see that 2003 is a year which will be remembered in the history of the Europcar group. As is normal with this type of press conference, you will leave with a whole heap of figures. We wanted to stick just to what was essential. And even, why not say it, if you are to remember just one figure, then make it the number ONE, our new place in the European market and the place reserved for us by the juries of the two professional awards.

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for listening. I will be happy to answer any of your questions.

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