Austrian economic news in a flash - 14.10

(The most important economic news in Austria)

Vienna Airport raised the number of serviced passengers by 13.8% to 1.947m in September 2010. The number of passengers to eastern Europe soared 22.1%. In the first nine months of the year, Vienna Airport handled 8.3% more passengers, the firm said in a press release.
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Sugar, starch and fruit group Agrana said in a statement its sales rose 3.8% to EUR 1.073bn in the first half of fiscal 2010/11. The net profit rose to EUR 37.4m from EUR 34.8m a year earlier. The sales result slightly missed the expectations of analysts, while the profit one exceeded them.
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Toll technology company Efkon AG, part of Strabag, has received its biggest order so far in Malaysia, the firm said.
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Brick maker Wienerberger expects a slow recovery of the demand in eastern Europe and sees challenging environment on the market in the near future, CEO Heimo Scheuch said at the Reuters Central and Eastern Europe Investment Summit in Vienna. Sales volumes and prices in Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania continue to be under pressure, he added, quoted by Reuters. The CEO, however, confirmed that Wienerberger expects improved results for 2010 as compared with last year.
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Technology and metal group A-Tec said it expects an EBIT loss of EUR 27m for 2010 on sales of EUR 2.7bn. The results will be burdened by rising costs at a hydropower project in Australia, which are however expected to hit only the 2010 figures.