Mondi quarter operating profit in line

28th Jul 2009 07:49

Paper and packaging firm Mondi confirmed underlying opening profit for the second quarter of 2009 will be similar to the first quarter and said it had been further impacted by a special item charge of €80m in the half. The group expects underlying earnings per share for the first half to be 5 to 10 euro cents (2008 24.8).Headline loss/earnings per share will be -3 to 2 euro cents (2008 18.3 profit), while basic loss per share is expected to be -10 to -5 (2008 17.1 profit).The group said the net special items charge of circa €80m (includingimpairment charges of around €44m) mainly relates to previously announced restructuring actions taken in response to market conditions. This compares to a net special items charge of €39m in the prior period.