NEW YORK (Bloomberg) – Alcoa Inc., the largest US aluminium producer, reported second-quarter sales and profit that beat analysts' estimates and forecast higher global demand for the metal, which may signal broader economic growth.

Alcoa gained in European trading yesterday after saying rising sales of aluminum for packaging and commercial transport helped it report per-share earnings of 13 cents, exceeding the 11-cent average estimate of 17 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Global aluminum consumption will climb 12 percent this year, compared with the company's previous forecast of ten percent, Alcoa said.

"It's a very positive signal for economic growth and the stock market generally," John Stephenson, who helps manage C$1.65 billion ($1.6 billion) including Alcoa shares at First Asset Investment Management in Toronto, said in an interview. "Maybe end-use demand has not been destroyed. That's a very good sign and a great way to start off this Q2 earnings season."

Alcoa's German-traded shares rose 2.9 percent to $11.19 as of 10.30 a.m. central European time yesterday. The company, the first in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to report earnings for the three months through June, fell 0.6 percent to $10.87 in New York before the earnings announcement, extending its decline this year to 33 percent.