NEW YORK -- General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE) Chief Executive Jeff Immelt on Tuesday laid out an aggressive acquisition agenda for 2002, saying weak economic conditions present excellent buying opportunities.
Immelt also said he expects an economic turnaround in 2003. His plan for next year assumes no economic growth in 2002, but GE should still generate earnings growth of up to 18 percent.
If the economy starts to recover in the second half of 2002, GE will see more robust growth in all of its businesses, Immelt told Wall Street analysts and investors in New York.
GE, whose operations range from financial services to power and aerospace, sees acquisitions in 2002 bolstering its Medical Systems and Power Systems operations as well as the engine services segment and the NBC broadcasting group. Immelt noted he does not see NBC in cable, satellites or studios.
Shares of GE, a component of the Dow Jones industrial average, jumped $1.65, or 4.3 percent, to $39.95 in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange. With Tuesday's gain, GE shares erased their loss following the Sept. 11 attacks.
