Uranium tetrachloride, uranyle chloride, fluoride and also nitrate or acetate are very efficient homogeneous catalysts for the Friedel-Crafts acylation of aromatic compounds. With uranyle salts, the reaction, carried under dry air, is highly specific and the mono- or bisacylation products are obtained in high yield. Uranyle catalyst can be quantitatively recovered and reused and the organic products are obtained free of uranium.