Philips sees 54% fall in profits

Philips saw strong TV sales in emerging markets

Philips Electronics has said its second quarter profits fell by more than half from a year earlier despite strong sales in several emerging markets.

The Dutch company announced net profit of 720m euros (£575.1m; $1.14bn) down from 1.57bn euros in the same quarter last year.

Television sales in emerging markets, like Eastern Europe were robust, helped by the Euro 2008 football tournament.

Sales rose 6% to 6.46bn euros, above analysts' expectations of 6.35bn euros.

Chief executive Gerard Kleisterlee was positive about the sales results, saying they proved the company's resilience "in a rapidly deteriorating macro-economic environment".

Philips said a sale of its shares in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, made under a plan to reduce its holding in the firm to zero by 2010, produced just 780m euros compared with 1.2bn euros in the second quarter last year - contributing to the fall in profit.