News Summary: Alcoa posts 4Q profit, revenue gain

ALUMINUM PROFIT: Alcoa Inc. reported fourth-quarter net income of $242 million, or 21 cents per share, helped by one-time gains such as the sale of a hydroelectric project. Without those items it earned 6 cents per share, in line with Wall Street forecasts.

ANALYSTS BEAT: Alcoa reported revenue of $5.9 billion, beating the $5.58 billion forecast among analysts surveyed by FactSet.

FOILING THE DOWNTURN: Demand for aluminum has been sapped by the weak global economy, but Alcoa predicted a 7 percent increase in demand in 2013, slightly better than the 6 percent increase in 2012.