Ubisoft invests in free-to-play games, signals profits might fall
FILE PHOTO: The UbiSoft Entertainment logo is seen at the Paris Games Week (PGW), a trade fair for video games in Paris, France, October 29, 2019. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File Photo
May 11, 2021
By Enrico Sciacovelli and Kate Entringer
(Reuters) – French video games company Ubisoft warned operating profit might fall this financial year as the maker of “Assassin’s Creed” invests in new titles and laps a surge in gaming at the start of coronavirus lockdowns.
However, the company said on Tuesday a strong back catalogue and new releases should help net bookings grow by a “single digit” percentage, after a 46% leap in the year ended March 31.
UPDATE 1-Belgium s Solvay sees 2021 results hit from higher input, freight costs Reuters 3 hrs ago
Popular Searches Quarterly results beat expectations (Adds background, CFO quote)
May 5 (Reuters) - Belgian chemicals group Solvay said on Wednesday it expected rising raw material and logistics costs to hit results this year after oil prices rebounded and a container shortage pushed up freight rates.
The company, whose products range from base chemicals such as soda ash to speciality polymers used in cars and planes, expects higher costs to dent earnings by 150 million euros to 200 million euros ($179.81 million-$239.74 million).
Storms in the U.S. and disruption at the Suez Canal after a ship blocked the waterway for six days in March added to global container shortages that have driven up rates.
By Reuters Staff
(Updates with CEO comments on outlook, sectors, India)
April 29 (Reuters) - French consulting and IT services provider Capgemini said on Thursday its 2021 revenue growth should exceed the mid-point of its target range after stronger than anticipated first quarter growth driven by its data and cloud business.
Those services, which now account for two thirds of the group’s activity, have kept growing at a double-digit rate as more companies go digital because of the pandemic, Chief Executive Aiman Ezzat told reporters.
“Our clients’ demand in terms of digital transformation continues to accelerate,” he said.
The momentum should carry into the second quarter, Ezzat said, although overall growth was weighed down by the aerospace sector, which has been reeling from the collapse in air travel caused by the pandemic.
By Reuters Staff
(Updates with CEO comments on outlook, sectors, India)
April 29 (Reuters) - French consulting and IT services provider Capgemini said on Thursday its 2021 revenue growth should exceed the mid-point of its target range after stronger than anticipated first quarter growth driven by its data and cloud business.
Those services, which now account for two thirds of the group’s activity, have kept growing at a double-digit rate as more companies go digital because of the pandemic, Chief Executive Aiman Ezzat told reporters.
“Our clients’ demand in terms of digital transformation continues to accelerate,” he said.
The momentum should carry into the second quarter, Ezzat said, although overall growth was weighed down by the aerospace sector, which has been reeling from the collapse in air travel caused by the pandemic.
China, medical oxygen drive Air Liquide Q1 sales beat
04/23/2021 | 02:05am EDT
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(Reuters) -French industrial gas company Air Liquide posted better-than-expected first-quarter sales on Friday, driven by high medical oxygen demand caused by the global coronavirus pandemic and a strong rebound in China. In a global health context that still differs from region to region, the group remains committed to supplying healthcare facilities with medical oxygen, Air Liquide s chief executive, Benoit Potier, said in a statement.
Air Liquide, which supplies gases such as oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen to factories and hospitals, saw healthcare sales jump 10% in the first three months of the year.