ThyssenKrupp Q2 profit exceeds expectations

ThyssenKrupp, the biggest German steel group, saw second quarter pre-tax profit leap by an annualised 84 percent to 352 million euros ($500 million), it said Friday. The result was much better than an average analyst forecast of 298 million euros compiled by Dow Jones Newswires. ThyssenKrupp, which also manufactures elevators and auto components and offers industrial installation services, posted a 21 percent gain in sales to 12.3 billion euros, in line with analysts' forecasts. Group net profit came to 272 million euros, an increase of 32 percent from the company's previous second quarter, which runs from January through the end of March. "We are profiting from rising volumes and prices in the materials and components business," a statement quoted ThyssenKrupp chairman Heinrich Hiesinger as saying. "The elevator and plant engineering businesses have strong orders in hand and high earnings quality," he added. Two soft spots in the results remained new plants in Brazil and the United States, however. A "considerable negative contribution" from the sites was nonetheless more than offset elsewhere, the group said as it confirmed a full-year sales growth target of 10 to 15 percent from the 2009/2010 figure of 42.6 billion euros. Earnings are "expected to grow faster than sales," the group added. Last week, ThyssenKrupp unveiled a broad restructuring of its business that would include the sale of assets that generated 10 billion euros. Hiesinger, the group's new boss, is to provide more details on restructuring plans at a press conference later in the day.