a reduction in our on-going effective tax rate resulting from our profits earned outside the United States; our effective tax rates for these operations are generally lower than the U.S. statutory rate.

Fiscal 2007 Compared to Fiscal 2006

In fiscal 2007, our effective tax rate reflects tax benefits from our operations outside the United States; our tax rate on these operations is generally lower than the U.S. statutory rate. These benefits included the 10-year European tax agreement finalized in the second quarter of fiscal 2007, which is effective for fiscal years 2006 through 2015. This agreement, which provided a retroactive tax benefit for fiscal 2006 and the first quarter of fiscal 2007, favorably impacted our effective tax rate for fiscal 2007.

Futures Orders

Worldwide futures and advance orders for footwear and apparel scheduled for delivery from June through November 2008 were more than 11% higher than such orders reported for the comparable period of fiscal 2007. This futures growth rate is calculated based upon our forecasts of the actual exchange rates under which our revenues will be translated during this period, which approximate current spot rates. The net effect from changes in currency exchange rates contributed approximately 3 percentage points to this reported futures growth versus the same period in the prior year. Excluding this currency impact, unit sales volume increases for both footwear and apparel drove the growth in overall futures and advance orders. The reported futures and advance orders growth is not necessarily indicative of our expectation of revenue growth during this period. This is because the mix of orders can shift between advance/futures and at-once orders. In addition, exchange rate fluctuations as well as differing levels of order cancellations and discounts can cause differences in the comparisons between futures and advance orders, and actual revenues. Moreover, a significant portion of our revenue is not derived from futures and advance orders, including at-once and close-out sales of NIKE footwear and apparel, wholesale sales of equipment, Cole Haan, Converse, Hurley, Umbro, NIKE Golf and retail sales across all brands.

Operating Segments

The following discussion includes disclosure of pre-tax income for our operating segments. We have reported pre-tax income for each of our operating segments in accordance with SFAS No. 131, “Disclosures about Segments of an Enterprise and Related Information.” As discussed in Note 17 — Operating Segments and Related Information in the accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, certain corporate costs are not included in pre-tax income of our operating segments.



U.S. Region



Fiscal 2008 Compared to Fiscal 2007

During fiscal 2008, the increase in U.S. footwear revenue was the result of low-single digit growth in unit sales and a slight increase in the average selling price per pair. The growth in unit sales and average selling price per pair was driven by higher demand for our NIKE brand sportswear products and Brand Jordan products, partially offset by a decrease in demand for our NIKE brand basketball products. The increase in average