Fiat Industrial Q3 profits up 30 percent

MILAN (AP) ? Fiat Industrial SpA, the Italian maker of trucks, farming and construction equipment, reported a 30-percent increase in third-quarter earnings Wednesday on "robust" sales of tractors and farm combines.

Net profit was ?260 million ($337 million) in the quarter ending Sept. 30, up from ?182 million last year. Revenues were ?6.3 billion ($8.2 billion).

Fiat Industrial, which is based in the northern city of Turin, firmed up its full-year forecasts for the capital goods business, which was spun off from the Italian car business last year. It said net income for the year would total ?900 million on revenues above ?25 billion.

It also pushed up its forecast for trading profit ? or earnings before interest, taxes and one-time items ? to in excess of ?2 billion from a more conservative range, and raised the range of industrial debt as high as ?1.5 billion.

While the CNH agricultural equipment business reported strong sales, driven by high horsepower tractors in North America, Fiat Industrial said revenues at its Iveco truck business was hurt by weak European demand. The contraction in truck sales also hurt performance of the powertrain division, which reported a 13 percent decline in revenues.

Fiat Industrial Chairman Sergio Marchionne has proposed full integration with U.S.-based CNH, already 88-percent owned by the Italian company. CNH advisers rejected the deal earlier this month. Marchionne has pressed to salvage a merger and is expected to provide an update in an analyst call later in the day.

The merger would create a competitor to major North American capital goods companies and make the company more attractive to investors, Marchionne has said. He is also CEO of carmakers Fiat and Chrysler.

CNH Global N.V., based in the Chicago suburb of Burr Ridge, Illinois, sells farm and construction equipment under the Case and New Holland brands in 170 countries.

Fiat Industrial stock was trading up 4 percent at ?3.76 on the Milan exchange.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/fiat-industrial-q3-profits-30-percent-132010214--finance.html

Sam Mikulak London 2012 diving Tim Berners-Lee Olympics 2012 Schedule Kenneth Branagh Lupe Ontiveros London 2012 China