FRANKFURT/HANOVER, Germany, Feb 13 (Reuters) – German travel
and tourism group TUI AG’s new CEO, lumbered with a
22 percent stake in loss-making shipping group Hapag-Lloyd
, said he would have little patience with
underperforming businesses.

“I have always followed the strategy to work on the
strengths of the company and not waste too much time trying to
improve weaknesses,” Friedrich Joussen said at TUI’s annual
shareholder meeting, at which he took over as chief executive.

FRANKFURT, Feb 11 (Reuters) – Germany’s Bilfinger
predicted a rise in underlying earnings this year, and lifted
its dividend for 2012, as its shift away from volatile
construction markets towards more stable building services
activities pays off.

The firm, which maintains, modernises and operates
buildings, industrial plants and power stations, is benefiting
from booming oil and gas industries as well as a trend in less
robustly performing sectors to outsource in a bid to save money.

FRANKFURT, Feb 7 (Reuters) – HeidelbergCement
expects to be able to raise prices this year following a pick-up
in demand in some of its markets in Asia, Africa and north
America, it said on Thursday, after reporting a near 11 percent
rise in quarterly profits.

The German company also said it aimed to step up its
cost-cutting programme to save an extra 150 million euros this
year, which will bring its target for cutting annual costs over
the three years ending 2013 to 1 billion euros ($1.4 billion).

FRANKFURT, Jan 18 (Reuters) – German group Bilfinger
, which has shifted to servicing industrial plants from
construction, will buy water technology company Johnson Screens
for around 100 million euros ($134 million) to access customers
in the United States and Australia.

Finance chief Joachim Mueller did not give the exact price
of the transaction but said it represented 8-9 times earnings
before interest, taxes and amortization (EBITA) of the company.

FRANKFURT/BUDAPEST, Jan 15 (Reuters) – The danger of an 800
billion forint ($3.61 billion) hit to the Hungarian budget from
compensation payments linked to a fall in business at Budapest
airport faded on Tuesday as airport operator Hochtief
said the facility was doing well.

Last year’s collapse of state-owned carrier Malev,
which was responsible for 40 percent of annual sales at Budapest
airport, raised concerns a corresponding fall in passenger
numbers could trigger payments to the five airport operators
under a so-called hardship clause.

FRANKFURT, Nov 14 (Reuters) – Germany’s Bilfinger
beat expectations for quarterly earnings, helped by orders to
maintain factories in Scandinavia, oil platforms in the North
Sea and a gas plant in Germany.

Bilfinger, which services industrial plants, won major
orders in the period from clients such as Germany’s BASF
, Britain’s BP and Norway’s Statoil,
the Mannheim, Germany-based company said on Wednesday.

FRANKFURT, Nov 12 (Reuters) – German real estate group
Deutsche Wohnen raised its earnings expectations after
increasing rents, leasing more apartments and selling more
flats.

“Demand for properties as an investment continues to
increase,” the company said on Monday.

FRANKFURT, Nov 8 (Reuters) – German cement maker
HeidelbergCement beat third-quarter earnings forecasts
as price increases, cost cuts and a lower euro made up for
declining sales.

With a weak economy keeping a lid on overall demand, Chief
Executive Bernd Scheifele is focusing on raising profitability
with a series of programmes to lift prices and shave costs.

FRANKFURT, Nov 8 (Reuters) – German cement maker
HeidelbergCement reported third-quarter earnings that
beat expectations thanks to a recovery in residential
construction in North America and continued strong demand from
Asia.

Operating income rose 15 percent to 649 million euros ($828
million), compared with the 586 million euro average of
estimates in a Reuters poll.

FRANKFURT, Nov 7 (Reuters) – Hochtief AG, a German
construction and industrial services provider, posted higher
than expected third-quarter earnings and raised expectations for
orders and sales on Asia and the United States.

Its order backlog and sales this year will match 2011
levels, and not fall as previously predicted, helped by its
construction business in the United States and its building and
mining operations in Australia, the company, controlled by
Spain’s ACS, said on Wednesday.