[naviga:h2]VW sees 1st quarter profits jump 44%[/naviga:h2]

FRANKFURT, Germany — German automaker Volkswagen saw its first quarter profit jump 44 percent as it focused on selling more profitable models and worked past its scandal over diesel cars rigged to cheat on emissions tests.

Costs and fines from the scandal that emerged in September 2015 have dinged Volkswagen’s large cash pile but the chief financial officer said today the company was solid enough to handle added costs. Volkswagen also reaffirmed its profit goal for the full year.

After-tax profit rose to 3.4 billion euros ($3.7 billion) from 2.4 billion euros in the year-earlier quarter. The result beat the 3.1 billion euros expected by analysts surveyed by financial information provider FactSet.

Revenues, meanwhile, rose 10 percent to 56.2 billion euros.

The Wolfsburg-based company said the improvement came from tighter cost controls, a sales mix favoring its more-profitable models and shifts in currency exchange rates.

[naviga:h2]Yum’s Taco Bell, KFC sales climb[/naviga:h2]

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Yum Brands reported a better-than-expected profit for the first quarter as Taco Bell’s sales jumped.

The Louisville, Ky., company said sales rose 8 percent at established locations for its Taco Bell division, which has stores mostly in North America. The KFC unit saw U.S. sales climb 2 percent, while Pizza Hut’s struggles continued with a 7 percent decline. Pizza Hut has suffered slumping sales as rival Domino’s has enjoyed six straight years of quarterly sales growth, boosted by its efforts to make ordering easier.

For the quarter, Yum Brands earned $280 million.