Caterpillar profit beats forecasts
Caterpillar posted a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit yesterday as cost cuts and an uptick in demand for its building equipment offset continued weak sales to the mining industry. It expects construction-equipment sales, which jumped 20 per cent in the most recent quarter, to rise another five per cent in the coming year. The firm reported fourth-quarter profit of $1bn, or $1.54 a share, up from $697m, or $1.04 a share, in the same period of 2012.