Eaton Corp., Cleveland, reported earnings of $226 million in the second quarter on revenues of $3.38 billion, a significant improvement from the second quarter of 2009, when the manufacturer saw earnings of $29 million. Eaton Chairman and CEO Sandy Cutler said the results beat the company's own expectations, primarily on the strength of its end-use markets.
"As we survey our end markets, the year is shaping up to be better than we had forecast in April," said Cutler. "We now anticipate our overall end markets will grow by 8 percent versus our earlier forecast of 6 percent."
Cutler expects Eaton's electrical business in the Americas to be stronger for the year than originally forecast, despite continuing softness in non-residential markets.
"Our bookings in the Electrical Americas segment, adjusted for foreign exchange, increased 27 percent compared to the second quarter of 2009," said Cutler. "We now anticipate markets in our Electrical Americas segment will decline just 1 percent for the full year, as the recovery in our early- and mid-cycle markets and the benefits from stimulus programs have offset the decline in the non-residential market."