(Reuters) -Finland’s Nokian Tyres reported better than expected operating earnings for the second quarter on Friday, aided by lower supply chain costs, and sent its shares soaring 13% in early afternoon trading.
The tyre maker’s comparable operating profit rose 31% year-on-year to 26.3 million euros ($30.6 million) in the April-June quarter, while analysts polled by it had forecast 23 million euros on average.
In April, Nokian said it would review its cost base after it booked a much wider than expected operating loss for the first three months of 2025.
“It is encouraging to see early positive results from these actions”, CEO Paolo Pompei said in Friday’s earnings statement, adding that Nokian had adjusted its prices to offset increased raw material costs.
The group’s net sales rose 6.9% to 343.7 million euros in the quarter. That lagged analysts’ mean forecast of 354.2 million.
Uncertainty over U.S. tariffs coupled with weak car demand and increasing competition from Chinese automakers has put a brake on the European auto industry, resulting in cost reductions and supply chain adjustments across the board.
Earlier in July, German auto part maker Continental warned about a tariff impact to its second-quarter sales, having cut its forecast for its core tyre business.
(Reporting by Boleslaw Lasocki in Gdansk, editing by Milla Nissi-Prussak)
