Linde Group's six-month earnings attributable to Linde AG shareholders after adjusting for non-controlling interests advanced to €566 million from €445 million last year. Earnings after tax rose 23.8% to €598 million from €483 million a year ago.

In the first half of 2011, group sales improved 11% to €6.77 billion from €6.10 billion in the comparable period a year ago. After adjusting for exchange rate effects, the increase in sales was 10.3%.

Earnings per share grew by 26.2% to €3.32 from €2.63 a year earlier. On an adjusted basis, after adjusting for the effects of the purchase price allocation from the 2006 BOC acquisition, earnings per share stood at €3.79 compared with €3.15 in 2010.

The company confirmed its outlook and expects to achieve growth in group sales and group operating profit in the 2011 financial year compared with the prior year.