The German engineering group Didier-Werke AG, last week forecast in an official statement that 1997 earnings will at least equal those of 1996 even though it also reported a pre-tax loss of DM 8.8 mil…
The German engineering group Didier-Werke AG, last week forecast in an official statement that 1997 earnings will at least equal those of 1996 even though it also reported a pre-tax loss of DM 8.8 million (US$ 5.1 million) in the first quarter. Didier, which is majority-owned by Austria“s Radex-Heraklith, said orders in its refractories division had improved since the beginning of the year, especially from the steel industry. In 1996 Didier increased its group net profit by 12% to DM 18.5 million. Didier said that the loss in the first quarter, compared to a profit of DM 0.6 million in the year-earlier period, was a consequence of restructuring costs at a US subsidiary, Narco. Earnings were also hit because production at its German and west European plants was affected by a “difficult” development of orders up to the final quarter of 1996, Didier said.