MAN AG has reported a 67% rise in first-quarter operating profit on Tuesday, driven by strong demand at its core truck division, and forecast further solid earnings, according to Reuters.
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Operating earnings reportedly climbed to €105 million ($US134.8 million), in line with a market forecast of €103 million, while its operating margin improved to 3.3% from 2.2% a year earlier.
Reuters noted that MAN expected a substantial improvement in operating profit that would considerably outpace expected sales growth of more than 5%.
The news agency said first-quarter results were boosted by a significant improvement at MAN’s commercial vehicles unit, where operating profit nearly doubled to €62 million.
“This improvement was largely due to increasing capacity utilisation and higher sales, coupled with the impact of rationalisation measures,” MAN reportedly said in the quarterly report.
According to Reuters, the group said it expected a marked improvement in the division’s full-year operating profit and forecast moderate growth in demand for trucks in its key European market, soothing fears it might report a slowdown.
