Reuters: Polish refiner PKN eyes upstream deals to boost profit
Operating profit at Poland's No.1 refiner PKN Orlen fell by a fourth in the first quarter on lower refining margins, although that beat expectations thanks to higher sales at its retail and petrochemical units.
The state-controlled group on Thursday reported operating profit at 254 million zlotys ($84 million), which compared with 108 million in a poll of analysts.
The refiner also defied expectations with a net profit of 64 million zlotys. Analysts had pegged the bottom line at null, but it was still less than half of last year's figure as PKN struggles with profitability at home as well as at its Czech and Lithuanian units.