US conglomerate General Electric has reported a 35% drop in first-quarter profits to $2.89 billion. But the figures were better than expected as its financial arm remained profitable.
The company, sometimes seen as a bellwether of the US economy, also said it needed to cut costs further - by $5 billion - and had been reducing staff levels.
The profit amounted to 26 cents per share, topping analyst expectations of earnings of 21 cents per share for the conglomerate which makes transport and energy equipment, controls the NBC Universal media group and has a big financial services arm.
Revenues, however, fell below expectations, dropping 9% from a year ago to $38.4 billion.
