Global doldrums may affect 3M earnings for 2Q

The 3M Co. is expected to report low-single-digit increases in sales and earnings on Thursday, when the company reveals its second-quarter performance.

Wall Street analysts forecast the company will post net earnings of about $1 billion on nearly $8 billion in sales.

The company continues to face economic doldrums around much of the world, said Adam Fleck, an analyst with Morningstar.

"We're looking for more of the same in the second quarter for 3M," Fleck said. "The first quarter was a bit of a slowing period. They posted pretty low single-digit organic growth numbers, primarily due to some difficulty in the consumer electronic business. And that looks like it's probably going to continue here into the second quarter."

Fleck added: "The general economic slowdown worldwide definitely plays a part in this. There's a lot of uncertainty going on, and 3M has outlined kind of 2 to 5 percent growth for the full year. That is below where the company typically will be in a normal environment."

The company's fortunes depend on economic conditions around the world. It operates in more than 70 countries and sells products in nearly 200 nations, with about two-thirds of its sales outside the United States.

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