Mondi lifts profits in first quarter

6th May 2010 08:15

An improvement in trading in Europe led to a moderate rise in profits in the first quarter of 2010 from the last quarter of 2009 at the paper and packaging group Mondi.Mondi said it was also benefitting from actions taken to restructure its cost base in 2008 and 2009.The company is seeing a rise in volumes in most areas, it said, adding that it has also been raising prices, though revenue gains have been slightly offset by higher commodity prices.'The Europe & International Division continued to perform well with underlying operating profit for the first quarter moderately above the previous quarter performance and well above the comparable period in the prior year,' the company said. 'The South Africa Division increased underlying operating profit from a very low base in the previous quarter on the back of increased export selling prices but remains under pressure from the strength of the rand.'