Austrian economic news in a flash - November 3

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Brick maker Wienerberger said its EBIT fell to EUR 17.6m in the first three quarters of 2010 from EUR 36.7m a year earlier. However, the company's net loss narrowed to EUR 13.5m from EUR 198.2m, while sales decreased 5% to EUR 1.343bn. Wienerberger expects the conditions in the construction sector to continue to be challenging in 2011. It is still optimistic as the cost structure and the product portfolio have been improved.
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Car parts supplier Polytec said it booked a net profit of EUR 8.7m in the first nine months of 2010, compared to a loss of EUR 67.1m a year earlier. Sales improved 26.9% to EUR 550.2m. The company raised its sales forecast for full 2010 but said that it has still problems at its Automotive Systems division. 
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Austrian Airlines should post a positive result in its long-haul business next year, executive Andreas Bierwirth said in Mumbai. AUA has relaunched its suspended Vienna-Mumbai flights this October.
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Raiffeisen Bank International plans to file a takeover offer for Polish Polbank, WirtschaftsBlatt reported, quoting informed sources. Offers can be submitted by November 11. Italian Intesa and French BNP Paribas are also said to be interested in Polbank, the paper added.
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Austrian builders Alpine and Strabag may be part of the motorway construction cartel, which is currently at the focus of the Slovak anti-trust authorities. Local daily Dnevnik reported that the investigation concerns 18 companies. The cartel is said to have made damages of EUR 2bn to the Slovenian state.