STUTTGART/FRANKFURT (dpa-AFX) - In the second quarter, Germany's major corporations increased their profits by an average of 17 percent compared to the previous year. However, not all Dax 40 companies participated in this development, as car manufacturers in particular weakened, according to an analysis by the auditing and consulting firm EY.

The most profitable company was once again Deutsche Telekom AG, which generated an operating profit (EBIT) of six billion euros, ahead of Volkswagen (5.5 billion euros) and Mercedes (four billion euros). RWE and Rheinmetall made particularly strong gains. Bayer and Siemens Energy returned to profit following losses in the same quarter of the previous year.

"We are on the brink of a recession"

In terms of turnover, the DAX companies only managed a small increase of 1.7 percent compared to the same period last year. In Europe, business developed more positively than in the other markets. In Asia, revenue even fell by five percent.

Henrik Ahlers, Chairman of the EY Management Board, speaks of "strong figures overall". "We are on the verge of a recession in Germany. We are also seeing structural problems in many sectors, such as overcapacity and a difficult cost situation." However, many top German companies are very strongly positioned worldwide and some foreign markets still offer opportunities for growth./ceb/DP/men