Credit Suisse’s investment bank drove a one-third jump in second-quarter group earnings, while higher interest rates should help future profits at its private bank, the lender said. For the second straight quarter, Credit Suisse’s more risky investment bank lifted group net profit, which rose to 1.05bn Swiss francs, a touch above the 1.02bn francs forecast by analysts in a Reuters poll.Compared with the previous quarter, typically the strongest period for capital markets, pretax profit was down 42%.Credit Suisse’s core capital ratio, a measure of financial strength, rose to 10.4% in the quarter, past a 10% target, which analysts said signaled higher payouts to shareholders.Credit Suisse paid the dividend largely in stock last year, but promised investors it would go back to cash when it met its capital targets.Pretax profit at Credit Suisse’s private banking and wealth management division rose 4% on the quarter and fell 6% year on the year, after the Zurich-based lender took a 100mn franc charge to cover a deal between the British and Swiss governments aimed at sweeping Swiss banks clean of undeclared money held in accounts of UK clients.Net revenue rose 1% on the year and 4% on the quarter, lagging large US rivals such as Morgan Stanley.The private bank’s net new money, a bellwether for future revenue, rose by 3.6% on an annualised basis from the previous quarter to 7.5bn francs, as strong inflows from emerging markets and super-rich clients, who have more than $50mn in bankable assets, compensated for outflows from Europe.Gross margins at Credit Suisse’s private bank rose by 2 basis points on the quarter, reflecting greater trading activity by clients.ABBSwiss engineer ABB’s more selective approach to projects and delays by utilities in starting new schemes drove a fall in second-quarter orders below expectations. Restructuring at the world’s biggest supplier of industrial motors and power grids also weighed on orders, which fell 7% on the year to $9.312bn.Second-quarter net profit rose 16%, below expectations. ABB said it is offsetting some market uncertainty by being geographically and technologically diversified, allowing the company to tap opportunities for profitable growth.The company’s shares have risen 15% so far this year, outperforming a 10% gain in the European industrial goods and services sector index that period.The stock trades at 14.5 times estimated earnings over the next 12 months at a premium to German rival Siemens’ 11.9 times and France’s Schneider 12.9 times, according to Thomson Reuters data.ABB, which also makes components for the oil and gas industry, is concentrating on consolidating acquisitions from a spending spree over the past few years. Most recently it said it would buy US solar energy company Power One for about $1bn.Second-quarter net profit rose 16% to $763mn, compared with the average forecast in a Reuters poll for a jump of 20.6% to $791mn.GMGeneral Motors yesterday reported better-than-expected profit and revenue for the second quarter on strong US demand and shrinking losses in Europe. Net income came in at $1.2bn on revenue of $39.1bn, compared with income of $1.5bn and revenue of $37.6bn during the year-ago period. Adjusted earnings of 84¢ per share were well above the 75¢ expected by analysts. The 19% profit decline was due in part to one-time items, including the purchase of GM Korea shares, that reduced earnings per share by nine cents, the biggest US automaker said in a statement. Net revenue rose 4% from a year ago, to $39.1bn. The average analyst estimate was for $38.4bn. In North America, GM’s biggest market, pre-tax income rose 4% to $1.98bn. Losses in Europe narrowed by more than a third to $110mn. Results in Asia were generally weaker, with pre-tax profit down 64% at $228mn, excluding China.GM’s Latin America earnings more than tripled to $54mn. RepsolSpanish oil group Repsol paved the way for the eventual sale of its stake in utility Gas Natural Fenosa yesterday, as higher production helped it to beat second-quarter profit forecasts.Repsol said net profit adjusted for one-time items and inventory costs (CCS adjusted net) rose 5.8% to 509mn euros in the second quarter, beating analysts’ forecasts of 402-481mn according to a Reuters poll.Production rose 12% to 359,700 barrels of oil equivalent (BOE) per day, putting the company firmly on track to meet its target for 10% production growth in 2013.Repsol’s CCS earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) rose 4.6% to €979mn in the second quarter against a poll average of 944mn.Net borrowings totalled €6.32bn at June 30, including debt from a preference share issue but excluding borrowings related to the stake in Gas Natural.Starwood HotelsStarwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, operator of Sheraton hotels, posted a 12% jump in quarterly earnings and raised its 2013 earnings forecast as a rebound in business travel fills its rooms.Starwood, which also owns the Westin, W and Le Meridien brands, said occupancy at its hotels in North America in the second quarter reached 76%, the highest ever.The second-quarter profit topped analysts’ forecasts and it also raised its outlook to above the Wall Street consensus, pushing shares up 2.5% in early trading.Second-quarter net income from continuing operations rose to $137mn, or 71 cents per share, from $122mn, or 62¢ per share, a year earlier. Excluding items, it earned 79¢ per share.Analysts on average expected earnings of 73¢ per share.XeroxXerox Corp reported higher-than-expected second-quarter earnings yesterday on growth in its services division and reiterated its full-year targets as its restructuring efforts showed signs of paying off.Known for its printers and copiers, Xerox last year kicked off a restructuring programme focused on its services business, which now generates about 55% of revenue and manages anything from toll systems to healthcare programmes. Chief executive officer Ursula Burns said the total contract value of services signings was up 40%, while new business signings increased 10%. The renewal rate for business processes and IT outsourcing was 95%, she said.Net income from continuing operations attributable to Xerox was $345mn or 27¢ per share, compared with 26¢ last year. The analysts’ average estimate was 24¢ per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.The company said it expected to take 2¢ a share in restructuring charges in the third quarter, with earnings before those items at 24¢ to 26¢.Revenue from the services business rose 5% in the second quarter, while document technology, which includes printers and copiers, was down 5%. Total revenue increased 1% to $5.4bn, excluding discontinued operations.Xerox reiterated its forecast for full-year earnings per share of $1.09 to $1.15, excluding special items, and operating cash flow of $2.1bn to $2.4bn.United ContinentalUnited Continental Holdings yesterday posted a higher-than-expected quarterly profit as costs fell and it raised fares, sending shares up 3% yesterday morning.The world’s biggest air carrier said second-quarter revenue rose 0.6% to $10bn, the highest ever for that period. The average airfare rose 3.5% to $289.46.The company made a number of changes to integrate as one carrier following the 2010 merger of UAL and Continental that formed it, including converting to a new computer reservation system.United Continental’s passenger revenue per available seat mile at United, a key measure of performance in the airline industry, increased 1%.Net income was $469mn, or $1.21 a share, for the quarter, up from $339mn, or 89¢ a share, a year earlier.Excluding items, profit was $1.35 a share, compared with $1.29 a share expected by analysts, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.Operating costs fell 1%, with fuel expenses falling 10%.StatoilState-backed Norwegian oil giant said yesterday that second-quarter profit fell more than expected due to sliding oil and gas prices and weaker results from its trading division. Net profit in the April to June period fell to 4.3bn kroner (€548.95mn, $725mn) from €26.4bn a year ago, when results were strengthened by one-off items and higher oil and gas prices. Statoil’s results suffered from a 7% dip in oil prices and an 11% decline in gas sales, and from lower profits in its trading division. Statoil produced 1,967mn barrels of oil equivalent (boe) per day in the quarter compared with last year’s production of 1,980mn boe per day. The Oslo-based group repeated that production would be lower this year than last year, when it stood at just over 2mn boe per day, and its long-term production target of more than 2.5mn boe per day by 2020. To achieve that target it plans to make $19bn worth of investments this year and to drill 50 wells. Shares in Statoil, an index heavyweight, were 1.51 lower in mid-afternoon trading on the Oslo stock exchange, which was down 0.43%.BASF The world’s largest chemicals company, Germany’s BASF, announced yesterday a fall in net profit in the second quarter but held to its targets.Between April and June, the group booked net income of €1.16bn ($1.53bn), down 4% year on year, it said in a statement. Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires had expected a rise of almost 8% to €1.3bn. Revenues however rose by almost 3% to about €18.3bn, confirming analysts’ estimates, driven by agriculture and energy products. These more than offset a decline in traditional chemicals, affected by lower prices and margins. Through the first half, BASF sales revenue was up 4% to €38.1bn although net group profit declined by over 10% to €2.6bn. MarutiMaruti Suzuki, India’s biggest carmaker by sales, yesterday reported a 49% jump in first-quarter net profit as cheaper imports of parts offset a drop in sales. Maruti said quarterly profit surged to Rs6.32bn ($107mn) in the three months to June from Rs4.24bn a year earlier. Maruti, 56.2% owned by Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor, has seen its costs drop due to a weakening of the yen against the rupee, which makes car parts imported from Japan cheaper. The yen fell 5% against the rupee in the April-June quarter compared to the previous quarter ended in March, analysts said. Year-on-year, the yen fell around 11% against the rupee. “The rise in profit was due to cost reductions and favourable foreign exchange rates,” the New Delhi-based company said in a statement. In the April-June quarter, the firming of the dollar to the rupee also aided Maruti’s exports to Africa, Europe and a number of countries in South Asia. Maruti’s sales fell 5.1% to Rs99.95bn, on a 10% drop in volumes to 266,434 units in the quarter.NissanJapanese car giant Nissan yesterday said net profit rose 14% in April-June as sales in North America soared while a weaker yen boosted its bottom line. But the country’s second biggest automaker also warned that sales to China, the world’s biggest car market, tumbled while demand in recession-riddled Europe was also weak. For the three months to June, Nissan said it earned ¥82bn ($821mn), up from ¥72bn in the same quarter a year earlier. Sales came in at ¥2.51tn, Nissan said, compared with ¥1.89tn in the same period last year. It added that owing to an accounting change in its reported results with the Tokyo Stock Exchange which removes a Chinese joint-venture from the figure, sales amounted to ¥2.23tn. Nissan said sales to the US market soared 20% to 306,000 vehicles in April-June as it prepares for a string of new product launches including its Rogue sport utility vehicle and luxury Infiniti brand’s Q50 sedan. Despite the upbeat quarterly results, Nissan saw a 3.3% year-on-year decline in unit sales to 1.17mn vehicles, as sales in China tumbled about 15%.The firm has not fully recovered from the impact of a consumer boycott of Japan-brand goods in China, as a long-running diplomatic dispute over a chain of East China Sea islands flared anew last year. Nissan’s China market accounts for about one-quarter of its overall sales, far higher than its domestic rivals. The automaker has been working to recover lost market share as Volkswagen and US-based General Motors tried to capitalise on the boycott. Yesterday Nissan also said demand in recession-riddled Europe remained weak. Coke EnterprisesSoft drink bottler Coca-Cola Enterprises reported lower quarterly earnings yesterday, blaming the weather, a sluggish economy and tough competition in Britain. Net income was $182mn, or 66 cents per share, in the second quarter, down from $205mn, or 67¢ per share, a year earlier.Excluding items, earnings were 77¢ per share, 1 cent better than Wall Street analysts were projecting, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.Sales fell 2.4% to $2.16bn, about in line with analyst estimates.For 2013, the company said it expects comparable earnings per share in a range of $2.45 to $2.50, while Wall Street has been expecting $2.48.Harley-DavidsonHarley-Davidson posted higher quarterly profit yesterday, lifted in part by a modest rebound in demand for its motorcycles in the US, its No 1 market.The company’s annual worldwide motorcycle shipment levels peaked at about 350,000 units in 2006, right before the US housing bubble burst and consumer demand for its bikes — which range in price from $8,000 to more than $30,000 — plummeted along with the broader economy.Harley-Davidson’s second-quarter profit rose to $271.7mn, or $1.21 a share, from $247.3mn, or $1.07 a share, a year ago. The results were better than expected. Analysts, on average, expected the company to report a profit of $1.18, according to Reuters Estimates.Sales and revenue rose just 3.4% to $1.79bn.Harley-Davidson said its independent dealers sold 90,193 new motorcycles in the second quarter, up from 85,714 bikes in the same period a year ago.Sales in the US, where the company sells more than one-half of its products, were up 4.4%.Profit rose more than sales, the company said, thanks to a 100 basis point improvement in gross margins, which was 36.9% in the second quarter from 35.9% a year earlier.The operating margin in the sales of motorcycles and parts jumped 220 basis points to 21.9%, compared with 19.7% last year.The gains reflected the company’s four-year-long effort to lower manufacturing costs though flexible work deals with its unions and other changes in the way it makes its bikes.Singapore AirlinesSingapore Airlines (SIA) said yesterday its net profit in the first financial quarter rose 56% from the year before, mainly due to one time gains. Net profit of S$122mn ($96mn) in the April-June period was driven largely by proceeds from the sale of surplus aircraft and gains after it sold its stake in Virgin Atlantic to Delta Air Lines, SIA said in a statement. Revenue climbed 1.7% to Sg$3.84bn. The Asian carrier received a net gain of Sg$336mn from the sale of its stake in Virgin Atlantic to the US carrier. However, SIA said also suffered a “restructuring impairment cost” totalling S$293mn on four surplus freighter aircraft it removed from the operating fleet and marked for sale. SIA reported a net profit in the year ending March of S$379mn, up 12.8%, boosted by surplus from the sale of aircraft, spares and spare engines.CapgeminiComputer services consultancy Capgemini raised net profit by nearly a third in the first half of the year despite a fall in sales because of tough trading times in Europe, it reported yesterday. However, the company, a leader in its field, said business in Asia rose strongly and it held to its annual targets. Net profit rose by 31.0% from the equivalent figure last year to €176mn ($232mn) but sales fell by 2.3% to €5.03bn. The company 128,000 people. Nearly half of them are employed outside France, and this part of the workforce grew by 18.0% in the last 12 months. In the second quarter, activity fell by 0.4% after a fall of 1.7% in the first quarter. Business in emerging markets in the Asia Pacific region had risen by 10.5%, and activity in the US was recovering. Business in North America had grown by 0.5%. In Europe, business in Britain and Ireland had fallen by 2.2%. In France, the group’s biggest market, activity had fallen by 2.2% but had turned positive in the second quarter when sales rose by 0.7%.Rolls-RoyceRolls-Royce recorded a net loss in the first half of 2013 compared with a profit after tax one year earlier on changes to finance costs, the maker of aircraft engines said yesterday. The British company posted a loss after tax totalling £358mn ($550mn, €416mn) in the six months to June 30 compared with a net profit of £1.2bn in the first half of 2012, Rolls-Royce said in an earnings statement. However, underlying pre-tax profits surged by a third to £840mn, while revenues jumped 27% to £7.3bn for the company whose engines are powering the new Airbus A350 wide-bodied planes.