Santander`s First-Quarter Profit Benefits Lower Provisions

In the first quarter of the year, Spain’s largest bank, Grupo Santander SAN , earned EUR 1,205 million, up significantly from the EUR 401 million it earned in the trailing quarter. Most of this increase was due to the non-recurrence of special loan loss provisions in the fourth quarter; excluding this, earnings were up 18% sequentially, but down 26% from the year-ago quarter because of … Continue reading Santander`s First-Quarter Profit Benefits Lower Provisions

BASF`s Crop Protection Products Help Boost Results in First Quarter

In the first quarter, BASF BAS continued to rely on its diversified product mix in what has been a challenging market environment for chemical producers. BASF’s agriculture and oil and gas businesses propped up sales in the first quarter, as revenues increased 4.8% year over year. On a geographic basis, management noted that growth in China was below the firm’s expectations during the quarter. Excluding … Continue reading BASF`s Crop Protection Products Help Boost Results in First Quarter

Credit Suisse Reports a Strong First Quarter

Credit Suisse CS earned CHF 1,026 million (CHF 0.76 per diluted share) in the first quarter compared with CHF 41 million in the year-ago quarter and CHF 221 million in the trailing quarter on better trading results and lower expenses. This quarter’s reported profit, which included CHF 80 million of noncash own-debt losses, amounted to an 11% return on equity. On a management-provided underlying basis, … Continue reading Credit Suisse Reports a Strong First Quarter

Kirby’s Coastal Operations Continue to Improve in the First Quarter

Kirby’s KEX first-quarter revenue fell 1% from last year. The decline was driven by anemic demand for United’s pressure pumping units, tempered by solid inland trends and improvement in coastal operations. The marine transportation business (75% of first-quarter sales) saw revenue increase 25%, thanks to persistent petrochemical and crude oil shipment demand, which is supporting 90%- plus inland-fleet utilization and favorable pricing. Market conditions in … Continue reading Kirby’s Coastal Operations Continue to Improve in the First Quarter

U.S. TREASURIES: Prices Push Higher on Solid Auction -10-Year 2.723%

U.S. Treasury prices got a bounce on an impressive $21 billion reopened 10-year auction, which saw solid demand across all measures and sent the 10-year into the leader position to slip to the 2.717% yield. The high-yield came in at 2.729% when traders had been looking for a mid-range of 2.74%, indicating buyers were willing to take about one basis point less of a payout … Continue reading U.S. TREASURIES: Prices Push Higher on Solid Auction -10-Year 2.723%

Still-Weak European Paper Demand Weighed on UPM’s 1Q Results

Despite relatively steady performance from the energy and pulp segments, UPM’s quarterly EBITDA contracted 20% year over year; EBITDA from the paper business was nearly halved over the same period. As the world’s largest producer of graphic paper, UPM remains highly dependent on its paper business, where volume continues to decline–European magazine papers fell 6%, newsprint fell 3%, and fine papers fell 6%–and present significant … Continue reading Still-Weak European Paper Demand Weighed on UPM’s 1Q Results