Kika/Leiner, AUA, etc.

Miserable balance sheets weigh on domestic companies

The bad news from the economy continues ...(Bild: gopixa - stock.adobe.com)

The bad news from the economy continues unabated - the forecasts of economists from Wifo and IHS, which have been revised downwards significantly, are joined by the miserable balance sheets of domestic companies.

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• On Wednesday, the formerly nationalized steel group voestalpine reported a 43 percent slump in earnings after tax for the first half of the year. Profit after tax fell by 43 percent year-on-year to EUR 183 million.
• The motorcycle manufacturer KTM announced financial requirements running into millions , including staff cuts.

• It was only on Tuesday that Kika/Leiner announced insolvency for the second time. Up to 1400 jobs are affected, whereby the furniture chain had already reduced the number of employees from 1900 to 1400 over the course of the year (see video above). The previous bankruptcy in the wake of the Signa insolvencies was only a year ago.

• The weak company balance sheets are affecting all sectors, with the sugar and starch group Agrana also issuing a profit warning and announcing savings of 80 to 100 million euros. The operating result (EBIT) will fall by at least half this year.

• The formerly state-owned Austrian airline AUA has halved its operating result (EBIT) in the first three quarters of this year. The Upper Austrian aluminum group AMAG reported a 21 percent drop in earnings for the first nine months of the year.

• Pistol manufacturer Glock was also hit, reporting a significant drop in turnover and net profit. The company recently missed out on major military contracts in the USA, Canada and Australia

• According to insiders, the European Central Bank (ECB) is urging Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI) and Bank Austria's parent company UniCredit to hold additional capital as a buffer against potential risks from their Russian business.

Glock recently missed out on major military contracts in the USA, Canada and Australia.(Bild: AFP/2024 Getty Images)

• Brick manufacturer Wienerberger is also struggling with a massive slump in profits. Profit after tax fell by 85 percent in the first three quarters of this year compared to the same period last year. Net debt climbed by 55 percent from 1.21 to 1.88 billion euros.

• Verbund also posted significantly lower profits. Turnover slumped by 40.4 percent to 5.84 billion euros.

• In the far west of Austria, the textile company Wolford was - once again - in the red. EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) fell by around 81 percent compared to the previous year.