ThyssenKrupp, one of the world's biggest steelmakers, said Friday that its second-quarter net profit fell from last year because of a multimillion-euro fine levied by the European Union, but sales rose.
The Duesseldorf-based company earned 244 million euros ($330.06 million) in the January-March period, compared with 441 million euros a year earlier. That was far less than the 553 million euros ($748.04 million) analysts polled by Dow Jones had predicted, but reflected the impact of the 480 million euros ($649.3 million) fined by the EU for alleged anti-competitive behavor in the elevator and escalator market.
The company, which is set to decide Friday whether to build a new $2.7 billion (2 billion euros) plant in either Alabama or Louisiana, said sales rose 11% to 13.1 billion euros ($17.72 billion) in the quarter, compared with 11.7 billion euros last year.