Challenging times ahead for Konecranes

Highlights of the third quarter reveal that the order book was EUR 1,040.1m at the end of September, 53% higher than a year ago and 6% higher than at the end of June 2011 and order intake of EUR 458.5m was up 22.8%. Operating profit, however, fell to EUR 26m from EURO 34.3m and represented 5.8% of sales compared with 8.7% last year.

According to the company, forecasting future demand continues to be challenging due to the macroeconomic uncertainties caused by the budget deficits and the level of public debt in Europe and the US. Although there are signs of weakening demand, the level of new inquiries is still reasonably good.

Operating profit for 2011, excluding possible restructuring costs, is likely to be at approximately the same level as in 2010 although sales are expected to be higher. The Business Area Service operating profit in 2011 is expected to fall short of 2010 level, although Business Area Equipment is forecast to increase from 2010.