Metsäliitto Group: Interim Report January – March 2006

 

Metsäliitto Group’s operating profit improved by 11 per cent in the first quarter

Performance in the first quarter of 2006
• Sales EUR 2 358 million (EUR 2 187 million 1-3/2005). Sales increased by 8 per cent.
• Operating profit EUR 82 million (EUR 74 million 1-3/2005). Operating profit improved by 11 per cent on the comparison period.
• Profit before taxes EUR 45 million (EUR 18 million 1-3/2005).

Events during the first quarter
• A review of the strategic business structure of the Metsäliitto Group’s Paper and Paperboards Industry (M-real) was initiated with the aim of surveying the opportunities and potential benefits achievable through involvement in structural change within the European paper industry.
• Pulp Industry’s (Metsä-Botnia) investment in Uruguay is proceeding according to plan. Construction work was suspended for 10 days in April.
• Wood Products Industry (Finnforest Corporation) and Metsäliitto-Yhtymän Tehdasmittaus Oy merged with Metsäliitto Cooperative on 31 March 2006.
• Tissue and Cooking Papers Industry (Metsä Tissue) expanded its market share by acquiring the Slovakian company Tento a.s., one of the leading manufacturers of tissue paper in central Eastern Europe. The acquisition was officially concluded in April.

Kari Jordan, President and CEO, Metsäliitto Group:
“I am pleased to report that we are now seeing the first signs of an upturn in the Metsäliitto Group’s earnings development. However, I must point out that the present level is not sufficient by any means. We must continue to improve the efficiency and profitability of our operations in order to achieve a level of earnings that will guarantee our desired competitive position within the forest industry.”

Additional information:
Lauri Peltola, Group CCO, tel. +358 50570 5606
Ilkka Pitkänen, Group CFO, tel. +358 1046 94260