LANDSBERG (dpa-AFX) - Commercial kitchen equipment supplier Rational has benefited from high demand in Asia in the first half of the year. Sales increased by four percent to 581 million euros compared to the previous year, as the MDax-listed company announced in Landsberg on Tuesday. Earnings in the second quarter rose by six percent to a record figure of just under 295 million euros. Earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) increased by ten percent to 149 million euros in the first half of the year. Rational slightly exceeded the expectations of experts surveyed by Bloomberg in terms of both sales revenue and profit. The forecast for the current year was also confirmed./zb/jha/