of $3.851 billion, or $5.06 per diluted share, in 2006. Excluding the special items in both years, the Company still achieved strong underlying operating performance, helped by a 6.7 percent increase in net sales, which included the divestiture impacts discussed above that reduced sales growth by 3.8 percent.

 

The following table contains sales and operating income results by business segment for the years ended December 31, 2008 and 2007. Refer to the Performance by Business Segment section for discussion of the gain or loss on sale of businesses, restructuring and other items that impacted reported operating income results.

  

In 2008, worldwide sales growth was broad-based, with five of six segments experiencing sales growth for the year. Safety, Security and Protection Services sales growth was led by acquisitions, primarily Aearo, along with organic growth in personal protection solutions, protective window films and cleaning solutions for commercial buildings, and RFID solutions (Track and Trace). Geographic area sales growth in this business segment was strong in every region, helped by Aearo, with organic sales growth led by Asia Pacific and Latin America. Health Care sales growth was strongest in orthodontics, dental and medical, with positive sales growth in all major geographies, led by Asia Pacific and Latin America. Industrial and Transportation had broad-based sales growth across the portfolio and all major geographies, with strong sales growth in industrial adhesives and tapes, automotive aftermarket, abrasives, and closure systems for personal hygiene products. Sales in Consumer and Office were led by the home care and do-it-yourself markets, with sales growth geographically led by Asia Pacific and Latin America. Consumer and Office experienced weakness in 2008 as slowdowns in the U.S. office markets and residential housing markets persist. Electro and Communications sales growth was led by electrical markets and electronic markets materials, with geographic sales growth strongest in Asia Pacific and Latin America. The electronics solutions and communications markets businesses remain soft. 3M also continued to experience declines in the flexible circuits business, where a number of product solutions are going end-of-life. Within Display and Graphics, positive sales growth in Traffic Safety Systems and Commercial Graphics was more than offset by lower sales in Optical Systems. Optical Systems sales were down 34 percent when compared to 2007, resulting in a sales decline for total Display and Graphics of 16.6 percent. Selling price and attachment rate pressure remain intense in segments of the LCD market as OEMs aggressively pursue cost reductions from their component suppliers, including 3M. In addition, demand dropped significantly in November and December of 2008 as numerous orders were canceled for large-size LCD panels due to weak holiday season sales, reflecting the global downturn in consumer and corporate demand. Refer to the Performance by Business Segment section for a more detailed discussion of the results of the respective segments.



Worldwide total sales growth was 3.3 percent in 2008. Local-currency sales