ABB's orders rise but third-quarter profits dip
Swiss engineering group ABB on Wednesday reported a surge in orders from the energy industry in the third quarter, but warned of headwinds from the slowing global economy.
The volume of new orders surged almost a quarter over the period, helped by large contracts in the energy infrastructure, oil and gas industries.
But net profit dropped 12 percent to $734 million between July and September from the level a year earlier, dragged down by a weak performance in its Power Systems unit.
Revenue dropped seven percent to $9.8 billion, the company said in a statement, warning that weak growth in Europe and the Ebola crisis could offset positive signs in the world's top economies, China and the US.
"In the short term, macroeconomic and geopolitical developments are signalling a mixed picture with increased uncertainty," it said in a statement.
"The market remains impacted by slow growth in Europe, political tensions in various parts of the world as well as the health situation in Africa."
On a positive note, orders jumped 24 percent from a year earlier to $11.2 billion, helped by a large deal in Britain.
A $2.1 billion deal helped boost orders in its Power System division by almost 80 percent from the level a year earlier, although costly delays to its solar and wind projects dragged down profit by 94 percent.
"I am encouraged to see attractive large project wins and five consecutive quarters of base order growth," chief executive Ulrich Spiesshofer said in a statement.
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The volume of new orders surged almost a quarter over the period, helped by large contracts in the energy infrastructure, oil and gas industries.
But net profit dropped 12 percent to $734 million between July and September from the level a year earlier, dragged down by a weak performance in its Power Systems unit.
Revenue dropped seven percent to $9.8 billion, the company said in a statement, warning that weak growth in Europe and the Ebola crisis could offset positive signs in the world's top economies, China and the US.
"In the short term, macroeconomic and geopolitical developments are signalling a mixed picture with increased uncertainty," it said in a statement.
"The market remains impacted by slow growth in Europe, political tensions in various parts of the world as well as the health situation in Africa."
On a positive note, orders jumped 24 percent from a year earlier to $11.2 billion, helped by a large deal in Britain.
A $2.1 billion deal helped boost orders in its Power System division by almost 80 percent from the level a year earlier, although costly delays to its solar and wind projects dragged down profit by 94 percent.
"I am encouraged to see attractive large project wins and five consecutive quarters of base order growth," chief executive Ulrich Spiesshofer said in a statement.
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