Online spurs Deutsche Post
August 6, 2013
Boosted business confidence among Deutsche Post DHL executives rubbed off on investors on Tuesday. The German postal service operator's shares rose by almost 5 percent in early trading, thus reaching their highest level in over five years.
The company reported an operating profit of 619 million euros ($820 million) for the second quarter, a 14-percent jump over the same period last year. Bottom-line earnings climbed to 422 million euros, more than doubling results of the previous year.
'Well positioned'
Deutsche Post CEO Frank Appelt revised up the firm's full-year outlook slightly, now aiming for an operating profit of up to three billion euros.
"We have improved our profitability despite a rather difficult business environment," finance chief Larry Rosen said in a statement, adding that the recovery of the global economy continued to be slow. Rosen insisted Deutsche Post was well positioned to deal with the current market situation.
Second-quarter turnover dipped 0.6 percent to 13.6 billion euros. The company said the decrease was largely attributable to currency exchange rate effects.
Net earnings in the quarter were driven mainly by a boom in online trade and a resulting boost to Deutsche Post's parcel delivery service. The company also reported strong profit in its express delivery segment.
hg/ipj (dpa, Reuters)