GE shares rise on upbeat forecast General Electric, the US industrial group, has set out a positive view of its prospects despite increased uncertainty about the world economy, strengthening its view of revenue growth for 2012 and confirming that it expects to increase profit margins this year and next. Speaking to investors in New York state, Jeff Immelt, the group's chief executive, said he now expected revenue from its industrial businesses to grow about 10 per cent, excluding the effect of acquisitions, compared with a previous forecast of 5-10 per cent. Mr Immelt said he wanted to continue to drive down the importance of GE Capital, the finance division, as a proportion of the group's earnings and suggested further large disposals were possible to achieve that. He also rejected recent speculation that GE could be about to make a large acquisition, such as the mining equipment group Joy Global, saying he planned to stick to deals in the $1bn-$3bn range, where the best value was available. GE would build its mining equipment business principally through organic growth, he said, adding: "Our investors should be very unhappy if we acquire a big underground mining company." The upbeat statement sent GE's shares up almost 3 per cent to $22.73. Although the global economic outlook had become more uncertain in recent months, Mr Immelt said, it was still in line with GE's expectations: weakness in Europe; a continued slow recovery in the US; slower but still healthy growth in China; and sustained expansion in resource-rich economies including Canada, Australia, and parts of Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa. The greater confidence in this year's revenue growth, Mr Immelt said, came because with "fewer months left in the year you can see a bit more clarity." Wind power is a conspicuous weak spot and is set to cut about 3 cents from GE's earnings per share next year because of an expected decline in the US market caused by the expected expiration of the wind production tax credit. However, other industrial businesses, including aero engines, oil and gas equipment and locomotives have been performing strongly. Mr Immelt also set an objective of becoming a new type of supplier to the oil and gas industry, using the company's size to fund research and development - which takes about 5-6 per cent of GE's industrial revenues - and building on oil services acquisitions GE made in 2010-11. "You've got a $200bn market cap oil and gas company that has tremendous technical needs, and today they're being serviced in the industry by very focused small oil and gas players - low market cap companies currently spending 1-2 per cent max on R&D," he said. There is a huge gap for a technical player in oil and gas that fills the customer's needs and can be very competitive against the people that are currently in the space. A single large oil company could buy $500m-$1bn in products and services from GE in a year, he said.