DENVER — Alcoa Inc. said Monday it posted a second-quarter profit as it sold more aluminum in the commercial vehicles, packaging and construction markets.
The Pittsburgh manufacturing giant kicked off earnings season by reporting net income of $136 million, or 13 cents share, for the quarter ending June 30. That compared with a loss of $454 million, or 47 cents a share, a year ago.
Revenue rose to $5.19 billion from $4.24 billion.
The second quarter results topped estimates from analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. They expected net income of 12 cents per share on revenue of $5.05 billion. Shares rose 2.7 percent in after-hours trading.
Alcoa is one of the first companies to report quarterly earnings so its performance can provide some insight into developing economic trends.
Alcoa said the improved demand helped offset a 1 percent drop in realized aluminum prices.
“Altogether, everything looked positive,” Argus Research analyst Bill Selesky said in a telephone interview.
Alcoa also forecast global aluminum consumption to increase 12 percent this year, compared with a 10 percent increase it forecast just three months ago.
The company believes China will account for much of the 2010 growth, with higher sales in the automotive, heavy truck and trailer, beverage can packaging and commercial construction sectors.
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