Paddy Power eyes bumper World Cup as profit guidance dents shares

By Padraic Halpin

DUBLIN | Wed Aug 28, 2013 4:28pm BST

DUBLIN (Reuters) - Irish bookmaker Paddy Power held out the prospect of bumper takings from next year's soccer World Cup after full-year profit guidance for 2013 disappointed investors.

Shares in the group, hit by punter-friendly results in what is a quiet year for major sporting competitions, were down 0.3 percent at 59.9 euros by 1514 GMT, continuing a falling trend from highs above 70 euros earlier in the year.

Davy Stockbrokers cut its rating on Paddy Power to 'underperform' in late April when its shares traded at 67 euros, saying fair value was 57.80 euros. The stock has since fallen 11 percent.

Paddy Power, which has posted stellar top-line profit growth in recent years, said on Wednesday that operating profit rose 12 percent to 75.4 million euros (64 million pounds) in the first half with revenues up 22 percent, driven by the group's market-leading online division.

The Dublin-based group said it was on track for low- to mid-double-digit full year operating profit growth in constant currency terms.

Chief Executive Patrick Kennedy forecast turnover from the 2014 World Cup of over 100 million euros, compared with 86 million in 2010, and expected the competition to deliver a major boost to its new business in soccer-mad Italy.

In contrast to rival William Hill, which suffered a slow start to its expansion into Australia, turnover at Paddy Power's Sportsbet brand grew at its fastest rate to date with profit and customers also growing by over 30 percent.

The bookie, which is set to be hit by new betting taxes in Ireland at the end of 2013 and Britain a year later, is seeking to capitalise further on fast-growing online and smartphone markets which now account for over 75 percent of its profit.

This week it begins trialling the first real money sports betting product on Facebook with a view to rolling it out across the social network in a matter of weeks.

"For operators who get this right, it is an enormous opportunity," Kennedy said.

(Editing by David Cowell)

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Express second-quarter profit rises 7 percent

n">(Reuters) - Apparel and accessories retailer Express Inc (EXPR.N) reported a 7 percent increase in quarterly profit as it attracted more customers.

Net income for the quarter ended August 3 rose to $16.9 million, or 20 cents per share, from $15.8 million, or 18 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue rose 7 percent to $486.2 million.

Same-store sales, which include e-commerce sales, increased 6 percent.

(Reporting by Maria Ajit Thomas and Aditi Shrivastava in Bangalore; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)

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Zale posts first full-year profit since 2008, shares soar

By Phil Wahba

Wed Aug 28, 2013 11:18am EDT

n">(Reuters) - Zale Corp (ZLC.N) posted higher-than-expected fourth-quarter comparable sales on Wednesday, led by big gains at its flagship chain, and reported its first profitable fiscal year since the financial crisis in 2008.

Shares soared as much as 23.7 percent to $11.08, reaching their highest since November 2008, when the financial crisis decimated sales of mid-priced jewelry. The stock has nearly tripled since April.

For the new fiscal year, the company expects more revenue gains despite the expected closing of about 50 more stores as it continues to pare unprofitable locations. Zale has about 1,076 jewelry stores and operates Zales and Gordon's Jewelers among other chains.

Zale, which three years suffered a liquidity crunch after sales collapsed, said same-store sales, or sales at stores open at least a year, rose 5.6 percent overall. Sales increased 8.1 percent at its Zales stores, its biggest business by far.

Analysts expected a gain of 4 percent for the whole company, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

That comes on top of an 8.3 percent companywide same-store sales increase in the year-earlier quarter.

Overall revenue rose 2.5 percent to $417.1 million in the quarter.

The company's turnaround began in 2010, when Zale got a $150 million lifeline from private equity firm Golden Gate Capital, and sales began improving.

Since then, Zale's business has gotten a lift from adding exclusive lines that offer higher margins. In 2012, Zale introduced Vera Wang Love, and this year it will expand its Celebration Fire collection to 600 stores from 220.

"This is an area for enormous growth in both margin and sales," Chief Executive Theo Killion told analysts on a conference call.

Last month, it signed a deal for branded credit cards with Alliance Data Systems Corp (ADS.N) that Zale said will offer it better terms than one with Citi. The program will begin no later than October 2015.

Zale has also been paying down debt, helping to lower interest expenses. Long-term debt fell to $410.1 million in the quarter from $452.9 million a year earlier.

The quarterly net loss narrowed to $8 million, or 25 cents per share, for the quarter ended July 31, from $19.7 million, or 61 cents per share, a year earlier. But Zale was still able to post a full-year profit.

In Canada, where Zale operates Peoples Jewellers and Mappins Jewellers, same-store sales rose 3.3 percent.

The stock was up $1.79, or 20 percent, to $10.75 in mid-morning trade.

(Reporting by Phil Wahba in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

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Apple, Samsung do not have to disclose profit details -court

By Dan Levine

Fri Aug 23, 2013 11:26pm BST

n">(Reuters) - Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd do not have to make public the financial details submitted to a U.S. court during high-profile patent litigation, a federal appeals panel ruled on Friday.

The Federal U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Washington reversed a lower court ruling that ordered the two companies to disclose portions of documents that contain profit and sales information.

"We recognize the importance of protecting the public's interest in judicial proceedings and of facilitating its understanding of those proceedings," the three-judge appeals panel decided. "That interest, however, does not extend to mere curiosity about the parties' confidential information where that information is not central to a decision on the merits."

Representatives for Apple and Samsung declined to comment.

Peter Scheer, executive director of the First Amendment Coalition - an advocacy group that argued in the appeals court to have the information disclosed - said he was disappointed in the outcome for the Apple/Samsung case.

However, Scheer said the ruling is not all bad for public access to court records. For instance, the ruling says companies cannot keep information secret in court merely by calling it a trade secret, and judges must scrutinize those secrecy requests, Scheer said.

"If all the cases that come after this one adhere loosely to the legal requirements articulated in this decision," Scheer said, "then those trials will be infinitely more open and transparent than otherwise would have been the case."

Apple and Samsung have been waging patent litigation across the globe since 2011, climaxing in a high-profile trial last year in San Jose, California. A jury awarded Apple over $1 billion, but U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh later slashed the award and ordered a retrial on some of the damages.

In the run-up to trial last year, attorneys for both sides submitted several documents to the court that contained financial details in order to calculate damages. The details were redacted, and Reuters filed motions in the court to unseal the documents.

Koh ruled against Apple and Samsung, saying the public's interest in understanding the proceedings outweighed the companies' rights to keep the information secret. However, the appeals court unanimously disagreed.

"While protecting the public's interest in access to the courts, we must remain mindful of the parties' right to access those same courts upon terms which will not unduly harm their competitive interest," Judge Sharon Prost wrote.

The case in the Federal Circuit is Apple Inc vs. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd et al., 12-1600.

(Reporting by Dan Levine in San Francisco; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Ken Wills)

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Samsung's 2Q profit record high but below forecast

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics reported a record-high profit for a sixth straight quarter but still disappointed investors who had higher expectations for the world's largest smartphone maker.

Samsung said Friday its April-June net profit jumped 50 percent over a year earlier to 7.77 trillion won ($6.9 billion).

The bottom line was lower than the market forecast of 7.96 trillion won, according to a survey of analysts by FactSet, a financial data provider.

Operating profit was also at a record high of 9.53 trillion won, up 48 percent. Sales rose 21 percent to 57.46 trillion won.

Samsung's latest quarterly report indicates that its explosive profit growth driven by Galaxy smartphone sales may be slowing as smartphones have become mainstream in developed countries. Emerging countries remain a source of growth for smartphone vendors, but consumers there flock to cheaper smartphones, leaving smaller margin to the manufacturers.

Samsung's division that makes and sells handsets, smartphones and tablet computers was the key force behind its latest run of record-setting profit. In 2012, the mobile division contributed 67 percent of Samsung's overall operating profit.

Samsung says its mobile business posted a lower profit compared with the previous quarter on marketing costs. It was first time in a year that the mobile division reported a smaller profit than the earlier quarter.

The Galaxy S4, the latest iteration of its flagship smartphone, hit 10 million sales in the first month of its sales in May, making inroads as Apple did not refresh its iPhone and iPad. But some analysts including those at JP Morgan Chase revised down their sales forecasts of the Galaxy S4 by more than 20 percent, expecting the handset's shipments after the first quarter of launch will weaken.

Many analysts also expect Samsung to mark down the prices of the Galaxy S4 in the fall and winter quarters as rivals, including Apple, will release new models.

Samsung said the smartphone market may expand at a slower rate in the current quarter but it still plans to increase shipments. Samsung has also released variations of Galaxy smartphone series to offer cheaper handsets and fend off competition from Chinese rivals.

The South Korean company is the world's largest smartphone maker. In the January-March quarter, it sold more smartphones than next four vendors combined and one in every three smartphone sold in the period was made by Samsung, according to market researcher IDC.

The company also said Friday that it plans a record-high capital expenditure for this year. Out of 24 trillion won ($21.6 billion) of annual capital spending, 13 trillion won will go to its semiconductor business and 6.5 trillion won will be spent on its display panel business.

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Southwest Airlines' 2Q profit slips 2 percent

DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines got a small break at the fuel pump during the second quarter, and that helped offset flat revenue and higher labor costs.

The airline paid 16 cents a gallon less for fuel than it did a year ago, and that added up to $88 million.

Southwest said Thursday that its quarterly profit fell 6 percent, but the results were still a bit better than analysts expected.

The airline, which carries more passengers in the U.S. than any other, saw a 2 percent drop in revenue per mile. CEO Gary Kelly said that demand was hurt by automatic federal spending cuts that reduced government travel and by higher taxes, but he said third-quarter trends were encouraging.

The company's revenue per mile — a closely watched figure in the industry — has been about 3 percent higher this month than in July 2012, and bookings for August and September "also look solid," he said.

Southwest officials declined to comment Thursday on the investigation into an accident this week at New York's LaGuardia Airport.

The National Transportation Safety Board is trying to determine why the nose gear of a Southwest Boeing 737 collapsed upon landing Monday night, causing the plane to skid off the runway with its nose on the ground. Several passengers and flight attendants were treated for injuries.

Southwest shares fell during morning trading but recovered to finish up 5 cents at $13.81. They have gained 35 percent for the year, about the same as the Arca index of airline stocks.

The stocks have rallied as investors grow more confident about sustained profits in an industry that lost billions last decade. Mergers have reduced competition, the airlines have curtailed flights to push up fares, and they've added revenue from a flock of fees for various services.

Southwest Airlines Co., which owns AirTran Airways, said that second-quarter net income was $224 million, or 31 cents per share, down 2 percent from $228 million, or 30 cents per share, a year ago.

Southwest said that stripping away special items — mostly changes in the value of fuel-hedging bets — it would have earned 38 cents per share in the latest quarter. That's a penny better than analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting.

Revenue increased less than 1 percent to $4.64 billion. Southwest said that was a second-quarter record, but it fell short of analysts' forecasts of $4.66 billion.

Traffic increased about 3 percent, and the average one-way fare rose less than a buck — to $151.23. The rate of fare increases has slowed from 2011, when airlines raised prices quickly to offset higher fuel costs.

Southwest and AirTran added flights in the quarter, so the average plane was 81.6 percent full, down slightly from 81.9 percent a year earlier. But capacity in June hit a record 85 percent as the summer vacation season hit full stride.

Lower oil prices early in the April-to-June quarter helped Southwest save 6 percent on fuel, its biggest expense, and the company cut maintenance spending by 3 percent, or $10 million. But labor, the second-biggest expense, rose 6 percent, or $76 million.

Kelly said the company was on schedule to repaint AirTran planes in Southwest colors and combine the two carriers by the end of next year. Southwest will complete the update of its reservations system next year, allowing it to handle international flights, he said.

___

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Samsung's 2Q profit record high but below forecast

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Samsung Electronics reported a record-high profit for a sixth straight quarter but still disappointed investors who had higher expectations for the world's largest smartphone maker.

Samsung said Friday its April-June net profit jumped 50 percent over a year earlier to 7.77 trillion won ($6.9 billion).

The bottom line was lower than the market forecast of 7.96 trillion won, according to a survey of analysts by FactSet, a financial data provider.

Operating profit was also at a record high of 9.53 trillion won, up 48 percent. Sales rose 21 percent to 57.46 trillion won.

Samsung's latest quarterly report indicates that its explosive profit growth driven by Galaxy smartphone sales may be slowing as smartphones have become mainstream in developed countries. Emerging countries remain a source of growth for smartphone vendors, but consumers there flock to cheaper smartphones, leaving smaller margin to the manufacturers.

Samsung's division that makes and sells handsets, smartphones and tablet computers was the key force behind its latest run of record-setting profit. In 2012, the mobile division contributed 67 percent of Samsung's overall operating profit.

Samsung says its mobile business posted a lower profit compared with the previous quarter on marketing costs. It was first time in a year that the mobile division reported a smaller profit than the earlier quarter.

The Galaxy S4, the latest iteration of its flagship smartphone, hit 10 million sales in the first month of its sales in May, making inroads as Apple did not refresh its iPhone and iPad. But some analysts including those at JP Morgan Chase revised down their sales forecasts of the Galaxy S4 by more than 20 percent, expecting the handset's shipments after the first quarter of launch will weaken.

Many analysts also expect Samsung to mark down the prices of the Galaxy S4 in the fall and winter quarters as rivals, including Apple, will release new models.

Samsung said the smartphone market may expand at a slower rate in the current quarter but it still plans to increase shipments. Samsung has also released variations of Galaxy smartphone series to offer cheaper handsets and fend off competition from Chinese rivals.

The South Korean company is the world's largest smartphone maker. In the January-March quarter, it sold more smartphones than next four vendors combined and one in every three smartphone sold in the period was made by Samsung, according to market researcher IDC.

The company also said Friday that it plans a record-high capital expenditure for this year. Out of 24 trillion won ($21.6 billion) of annual capital spending, 13 trillion won will go to its semiconductor business and 6.5 trillion won will be spent on its display panel business.

View the original article here

Southwest Airlines' 2Q profit slips 2 percent

DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines got a small break at the fuel pump during the second quarter, and that helped offset flat revenue and higher labor costs.

The airline paid 16 cents a gallon less for fuel than it did a year ago, and that added up to $88 million.

Southwest said Thursday that its quarterly profit fell 6 percent, but the results were still a bit better than analysts expected.

The airline, which carries more passengers in the U.S. than any other, saw a 2 percent drop in revenue per mile. CEO Gary Kelly said that demand was hurt by automatic federal spending cuts that reduced government travel and by higher taxes, but he said third-quarter trends were encouraging.

The company's revenue per mile — a closely watched figure in the industry — has been about 3 percent higher this month than in July 2012, and bookings for August and September "also look solid," he said.

Southwest officials declined to comment Thursday on the investigation into an accident this week at New York's LaGuardia Airport.

The National Transportation Safety Board is trying to determine why the nose gear of a Southwest Boeing 737 collapsed upon landing Monday night, causing the plane to skid off the runway with its nose on the ground. Several passengers and flight attendants were treated for injuries.

Southwest shares fell during morning trading but recovered to finish up 5 cents at $13.81. They have gained 35 percent for the year, about the same as the Arca index of airline stocks.

The stocks have rallied as investors grow more confident about sustained profits in an industry that lost billions last decade. Mergers have reduced competition, the airlines have curtailed flights to push up fares, and they've added revenue from a flock of fees for various services.

Southwest Airlines Co., which owns AirTran Airways, said that second-quarter net income was $224 million, or 31 cents per share, down 2 percent from $228 million, or 30 cents per share, a year ago.

Southwest said that stripping away special items — mostly changes in the value of fuel-hedging bets — it would have earned 38 cents per share in the latest quarter. That's a penny better than analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting.

Revenue increased less than 1 percent to $4.64 billion. Southwest said that was a second-quarter record, but it fell short of analysts' forecasts of $4.66 billion.

Traffic increased about 3 percent, and the average one-way fare rose less than a buck — to $151.23. The rate of fare increases has slowed from 2011, when airlines raised prices quickly to offset higher fuel costs.

Southwest and AirTran added flights in the quarter, so the average plane was 81.6 percent full, down slightly from 81.9 percent a year earlier. But capacity in June hit a record 85 percent as the summer vacation season hit full stride.

Lower oil prices early in the April-to-June quarter helped Southwest save 6 percent on fuel, its biggest expense, and the company cut maintenance spending by 3 percent, or $10 million. But labor, the second-biggest expense, rose 6 percent, or $76 million.

Kelly said the company was on schedule to repaint AirTran planes in Southwest colors and combine the two carriers by the end of next year. Southwest will complete the update of its reservations system next year, allowing it to handle international flights, he said.

___

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Starbucks profit up, U.S. sales unexpectedly strong

By Lisa Baertlein

(Reuters) - Starbucks Corp on Thursday posted a bigger than expected jump in quarterly profit after new "Refresher" fruit beverages and seasonal Frappuccino iced drinks helped drive more visits to its shops in the United States, its top market.

The world's biggest coffee chain also raised its full-year profit forecast, sending shares soaring almost 6 percent in after-hours trade.

Seattle-based Starbucks is a top destination for consumers with ample cash to spend on $3 to $5 lattes and other premium coffee drinks. As a result, it has withstood the economic weakness crimping fast-food chains and other operators better than some other companies.

McDonald's Corp and Panera Bread Co were among the chains hit by the summer swoon.

Starbucks' net earnings for the fiscal third quarter that ended on June 30 increased more than 25 percent to $417.8 million, or 55 cents per share, to beat analysts' average forecast by 2 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Global sales at Starbucks cafes open at least 13 months jumped 8 percent, versus the 5.8 percent average increase analysts' expected, according to Consensus Metrix.

In the U.S.-dominated Americas region, which contributes about three-quarters of Starbucks' revenue, same-store sales were up 9 percent, far better than analysts' average estimate for a 6.1 percent rise.

Same-store sales also increased 9 percent for China and Asia Pacific and 2 percent for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region, an area that has struggled to grow.

Based on results from the latest quarter, Starbucks boosted its full-year forecast to $2.22 to $2.23 per share from a previous range of $2.12 to $2.18 per share.

Starbucks shares were up 5.9 percent at $72.19 in extended trading late on Thursday.

(Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles; editing by Matthew Lewis)

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Spanish Banks In Profit As Jobless Rate Drops

A trio of Spanish banks, including bailed out lender Bankia, have posted big jumps in first-half profits - as the latest statistics show the first drop in the jobless for two years.

The banks have shown trading gains and lower writedowns on property assets helped a partial recovery from their annus horribilis last year.

Spanish bank profits were gutted in 2012 by massive losses on the ruptured property bubble and a deep recession is still hurting firms as more borrowers struggle to keep up with loan payments.

Bankia posted a 19.2bn-euro (£16.5bn) loss last year, the biggest of any bank globally.

It has now bounced back with a 200m-euro (£171m) profit for the first half of this year.

Spain has been hit with numerous protests over its economic woes

The lender said net interest income, or the difference between income from loans and interest paid on deposits, was 1.1bn euros (£945m), down 36% on the first half of 2012.

Mid-sized rivals Sabadell and Bankinter also reported rises in profit from a year ago.

Sabadell set aside an extra 321m euros (£275m) towards provisions related to refinanced loans, some of which it will have to reclassify as non-performing ones, as instructed by the central bank.

The bank posted a 123m-euro (£105m) net profit for the first half of the 2013, beating analyst expectations after big gains from financial transactions, such as trading operations.

The Bank of Spain recently asked lenders to reclassify more of their refinanced loans as non-performing ones.

Bankinter's net profit in the first half was 102m euros (£87.6m), sharply up from the same period a year ago when it was hurt by writedowns on bad property assets.

Spain has been in or close to recession for five years, largely due to a bursting of a decade-long property bubble.

Spanish unemployment for under 25s is still very high

It needed a 42bn-euro (£36bn) bailout of its banks last year, with most of the problems among its raft of smaller lenders.

Meanwhile, Spanish unemployment fell for the first time in two years to reach 26.26% in the second quarter, according to official data.

It showed that the tourist season has created a renewed demand for workers.

The number of jobless people fell by 225,200 over the quarter to a total of 5,977,500 jobseekers registered in the country.

During the first three months of the year, the unemployment rate stood at a record 27.2%.

Youth unemployment, however, still hovers around the 50% mark.

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Spanish Banks In Profit As Jobless Rate Drops

A trio of Spanish banks, including bailed out lender Bankia, have posted big jumps in first-half profits - as the latest statistics show the first drop in the jobless for two years.

The banks have shown trading gains and lower writedowns on property assets helped a partial recovery from their annus horribilis last year.

Spanish bank profits were gutted in 2012 by massive losses on the ruptured property bubble and a deep recession is still hurting firms as more borrowers struggle to keep up with loan payments.

Bankia posted a 19.2bn-euro (£16.5bn) loss last year, the biggest of any bank globally.

It has now bounced back with a 200m-euro (£171m) profit for the first half of this year.

Spain has been hit with numerous protests over its economic woes

The lender said net interest income, or the difference between income from loans and interest paid on deposits, was 1.1bn euros (£945m), down 36% on the first half of 2012.

Mid-sized rivals Sabadell and Bankinter also reported rises in profit from a year ago.

Sabadell set aside an extra 321m euros (£275m) towards provisions related to refinanced loans, some of which it will have to reclassify as non-performing ones, as instructed by the central bank.

The bank posted a 123m-euro (£105m) net profit for the first half of the 2013, beating analyst expectations after big gains from financial transactions, such as trading operations.

The Bank of Spain recently asked lenders to reclassify more of their refinanced loans as non-performing ones.

Bankinter's net profit in the first half was 102m euros (£87.6m), sharply up from the same period a year ago when it was hurt by writedowns on bad property assets.

Spain has been in or close to recession for five years, largely due to a bursting of a decade-long property bubble.

Spanish unemployment for under 25s is still very high

It needed a 42bn-euro (£36bn) bailout of its banks last year, with most of the problems among its raft of smaller lenders.

Meanwhile, Spanish unemployment fell for the first time in two years to reach 26.26% in the second quarter, according to official data.

It showed that the tourist season has created a renewed demand for workers.

The number of jobless people fell by 225,200 over the quarter to a total of 5,977,500 jobseekers registered in the country.

During the first three months of the year, the unemployment rate stood at a record 27.2%.

Youth unemployment, however, still hovers around the 50% mark.

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Spanish Banks In Profit As Jobless Rate Drops

A trio of Spanish banks, including bailed out lender Bankia, have posted big jumps in first-half profits - as the latest statistics show the first drop in the jobless for two years.

The banks have shown trading gains and lower writedowns on property assets helped a partial recovery from their annus horribilis last year.

Spanish bank profits were gutted in 2012 by massive losses on the ruptured property bubble and a deep recession is still hurting firms as more borrowers struggle to keep up with loan payments.

Bankia posted a 19.2bn-euro (£16.5bn) loss last year, the biggest of any bank globally.

It has now bounced back with a 200m-euro (£171m) profit for the first half of this year.

Spain has been hit with numerous protests over its economic woes

The lender said net interest income, or the difference between income from loans and interest paid on deposits, was 1.1bn euros (£945m), down 36% on the first half of 2012.

Mid-sized rivals Sabadell and Bankinter also reported rises in profit from a year ago.

Sabadell set aside an extra 321m euros (£275m) towards provisions related to refinanced loans, some of which it will have to reclassify as non-performing ones, as instructed by the central bank.

The bank posted a 123m-euro (£105m) net profit for the first half of the 2013, beating analyst expectations after big gains from financial transactions, such as trading operations.

The Bank of Spain recently asked lenders to reclassify more of their refinanced loans as non-performing ones.

Bankinter's net profit in the first half was 102m euros (£87.6m), sharply up from the same period a year ago when it was hurt by writedowns on bad property assets.

Spain has been in or close to recession for five years, largely due to a bursting of a decade-long property bubble.

Spanish unemployment for under 25s is still very high

It needed a 42bn-euro (£36bn) bailout of its banks last year, with most of the problems among its raft of smaller lenders.

Meanwhile, Spanish unemployment fell for the first time in two years to reach 26.26% in the second quarter, according to official data.

It showed that the tourist season has created a renewed demand for workers.

The number of jobless people fell by 225,200 over the quarter to a total of 5,977,500 jobseekers registered in the country.

During the first three months of the year, the unemployment rate stood at a record 27.2%.

Youth unemployment, however, still hovers around the 50% mark.

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View the original article here

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Spanish Banks In Profit As Jobless Rate Drops

A trio of Spanish banks, including bailed out lender Bankia, have posted big jumps in first-half profits - as the latest statistics show the first drop in the jobless for two years.

The banks have shown trading gains and lower writedowns on property assets helped a partial recovery from their annus horribilis last year.

Spanish bank profits were gutted in 2012 by massive losses on the ruptured property bubble and a deep recession is still hurting firms as more borrowers struggle to keep up with loan payments.

Bankia posted a 19.2bn-euro (£16.5bn) loss last year, the biggest of any bank globally.

It has now bounced back with a 200m-euro (£171m) profit for the first half of this year.

Spain has been hit with numerous protests over its economic woes

The lender said net interest income, or the difference between income from loans and interest paid on deposits, was 1.1bn euros (£945m), down 36% on the first half of 2012.

Mid-sized rivals Sabadell and Bankinter also reported rises in profit from a year ago.

Sabadell set aside an extra 321m euros (£275m) towards provisions related to refinanced loans, some of which it will have to reclassify as non-performing ones, as instructed by the central bank.

The bank posted a 123m-euro (£105m) net profit for the first half of the 2013, beating analyst expectations after big gains from financial transactions, such as trading operations.

The Bank of Spain recently asked lenders to reclassify more of their refinanced loans as non-performing ones.

Bankinter's net profit in the first half was 102m euros (£87.6m), sharply up from the same period a year ago when it was hurt by writedowns on bad property assets.

Spain has been in or close to recession for five years, largely due to a bursting of a decade-long property bubble.

Spanish unemployment for under 25s is still very high

It needed a 42bn-euro (£36bn) bailout of its banks last year, with most of the problems among its raft of smaller lenders.

Meanwhile, Spanish unemployment fell for the first time in two years to reach 26.26% in the second quarter, according to official data.

It showed that the tourist season has created a renewed demand for workers.

The number of jobless people fell by 225,200 over the quarter to a total of 5,977,500 jobseekers registered in the country.

During the first three months of the year, the unemployment rate stood at a record 27.2%.

Youth unemployment, however, still hovers around the 50% mark.

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