Elevator maker Kone says 2024 sales could rise slightly

By Elviira Luoma

(Reuters) -Finnish elevator and escalator maker Kone forecast 2024 sales in line or slightly above last year's level on Friday, after its fourth quarter orders beat expectations.

It said demand in India and Southeast Asia had been strong, helping to offset the impact of weak consumer sentiment in China, which accounts for around a third of sales.

Its shares were up 2.8% at 1535 GMT.

"Despite the economic and geopolitical uncertainty in the world, nine out of Kone's 12 end-markets continue to grow," CEO Philippe Delorme said in a statement.

In an interview with Reuters, Chief Financial Officer Ilkka Hara told Reuters China still offered potential for growth.

"In Q4 we saw growth at the services market and the modernisation market in China, which are really the future potential markets for us," he said.

He said Kone's new building solutions market declined by around 10% in China, adding the company expected an improvement in 2024, or "5-10% down when measured in units".

Quarterly sales grew 0.7% at comparable exchange rates to 2.81 billion euros ($3.05 billion), while orders received rose by 10.5% to 2.05 billion on the same basis.

Analysts had forecast sales of 2.86 billion and orders of 1.88 billion in a poll by Vara Research.

For the full year, sales reached 10.95 billion euros, slightly below expectations.

Inderes analyst Erkki Vesola said that while fourth-quarter order intake was a positive surprise, the 2024 guidance was imprecise and left room for interpretation.

The fourth quarter adjusted EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) margin was 12.8%, up from 12.5% a year earlier.

($1 = 0.9200 euros)

(Reporting by Elviira Luoma in Gdansk; editing by Milla Nissi and Barbara Lewis)