In the first quarter, the Finnish machinery and plant engineering company Raute posted 55% higher sales than in the same period of last year at €23.4m. Last year’s relatively low level must be taken into account when comparing the two figures, however. Raute’s considerably improved orders position since the end of 2011 was not reflected in marked increases in sales until the third quarter of 2012. In contrast to the fourth quarter of 2012 in which the company posted a record sales figure of €33.9m, sales headed downhill again in the first quarter of 2013. For 2013 as a whole, Raute is anticipating sales to be roughly on par with the good level of last year.
