General Electric tops profit forecasts

General Electric Co topped Wall Street’s profit and revenue forecasts for the first quarter, helped by strong demand for energy equipment and railroad locomotives — after taking a $200m (€152.5m) hit on its Irish mortgage business

Fairfield, Connecticut-based GE reported net income of $3.03bn, or 29c per share, down from $3.43bn, or 31c per share, a year earlier. The results include a $200m charge for exiting its Irish mortgage business.

The largest US conglomerate said industrial orders had risen 20% in the quarter and selling prices had improved in most of its businesses. This should help chief executive Jeff Immelt achieve his goal of boosting profit margins by a 0.5% percentage point.