(Bloomberg) -- General Electric Co. beat Wall Street’s expectations for second-quarter profit and reported surprise positive cash flow as sales at the key jet-engine division soared, buoying the conglomerate despite supply woes that continue to pressure the balance sheet.

GE Aerospace’s sales jumped 27% while orders climbed 26% in the period, the company said Tuesday in a statement, as rebounding travel boosted demand. That helped push the parent company’s profit to 78 cents a share, easily outpacing the 37-cent average of analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

“Aerospace was a key driver of our performance this quarter as the industry recovery builds momentum,” Chief Executive Officer Larry Culp said in the statement. Despite positive signs across GE’s operations, “much is still uncertain about the external pressures companies are facing at this moment.”

The results gave GE a lift even as it cut its cash flow expectations for this year and said it expects a negative impact from insurance accounting changes. While GE is still trending toward the low end of its prior financial forecasts on most metrics, the company said about $1 billion of free cash flow is likely to push out to the future due to supply-chain challenges and sagging renewable energy orders.

Culp continues to battle inflation, supply woes and sinking demand for wind turbines as he oversees preparations to break up the once-mighty conglomerate beginning next year. Lengthy Covid-19 shutdowns in China and the surging US dollar added to the challenges facing the maker of jet engines, power equipment and hospital scanners.

Free cash flow -- a closely watched measure of underlying profitability -- in the past quarter was $162 million, better than the $864 million outflow expected by analysts.

The shares rose 3.9% before the start of normal trading in New York. GE fell 28% this year through Monday’s close.

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