REED ELSEVIER, the Anglo-Dutch publisher, has passed the £1 billion profit barrier for the first time, although the company warned investors yesterday that growth would slow this year.

The specialist in scientific, legal, educational and business-to-business publishing increased pre-tax profits at constant currencies by 10 per cent to £1.01 billion in 2003.

After three years of double-digit earnings growth, Crispin Davis, chief executive, said that he was targeting mid to high one-figure earnings growth for this year, followed by a higher rate from 2005.

The reason for the expected slowdown in growth is a more than 10 per cent rise in investment to at least £330 million. Over £200 million will go into expanding the group’s online presence.

The results were better than expected, and Mr Davis said he saw “good opportunities for growth,” and that he had “the people and investment resources to deliver them”.

In London, the company’s shares rose 8 per cent on the news to 685¾p — the biggest riser in the FTSE 100.

Mr Davis sought to calm fears that academic journal prices could be weakened by “open access” publication whereby scientists pay to publish their papers and then make them freely available.

Mr Davis said that open access had only 1 per cent of the market. In the UK the dividend is to rise 7 per cent to 12p.

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