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MAN warns of tough times ahead

AFP
AFP - [email protected]
MAN warns of tough times ahead
Photo: DPA

German conglomerate MAN warned Thursday that it saw no improvement in prospects for its heavy truck division and also expected the global slowdown to hit its diesel motor and turbo operations.

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"Following the sharp downturn, industrial production should recover slowly over a period of several years," a company statement said.

"The impact of the recession will also be evident in the diesel engines and turbo machinery business areas over the coming quarters." Those sectors have turned in relatively stable performances until now.

In the heavy truck division, the group expected business "to remain at the current level." It posted an operating loss of €42 million in the third quarter, compared with a profit of €268 million in the same period of 2008.

MAN's net profit collapsed in the third quarter to just €6 million from €302 million a year earlier.

Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast a third quarter net profit of €34 million.

Orders fell 14 percent to €2.65 billion, while sales showed a similar drop to €3.1 billion.

Shares in the group slipped 0.66 percent to €54.27 in early trading on the Frankfurt stock exchange, while the DAX index of leading shares was 0.11 percent lower overall.

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