UPDATE 1-Taiwan's Compal Elec posts flat Q2 net profit

(Recasts with details)

TAIPEI, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Compal Electronics (2324.TW), the world's No. 2 laptop contract maker, posted a flat second-quarter net profit on Thursday, but the result beat expectations after it booked some investment income and foreign exchange gains.

Taiwan's Compal Electronics, which trails only Quanta Computer (2382.TW), booked a net profit of T$3.215 billion ($102 million) for the June quarter, down slightly from T$3.25 billion a year ago and almost flat from the first quarter's level.

Analysts on average had expected Compal to earn T$2.93 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.

"Sales declined in the second quarter, affected by product mix," Compal said in a statement, without elaborating.

Quanta and Compal, suppliers to top PC brands, including Hewlett-Packard (HPQ.N) and Dell (DELL.O), and other Taiwanese electronics companies are facing a slowing global economy that has hurt consumer spending.

Compal's second-quarter operating profit was T$2.32 billion, down 15 percent from the first quarter, it said.

However, the company had a non-operating profit of T$1.4 billion in the second quarter, including an investment gain of T$960 million and a foreign exchange income of T$180 million.

No comparative figures were given.

Its second-quarter operating profit margin stood at 2.7 percent, flat from the first quarter, while the gross profit margin rose to 5.3 percent from the first quarter's 4.7 percent.

Compal is set to explain the results and give guidance for the rest of the year at an investor conference, slated for early September, though the company has not set a date yet.

Compal announced the results after the Taipei stock market closed on Thursday. Compal shares fell 0.5 percent, while Quanta shares jumped 0.6 percent, against the main TAIEX share index's 0.7 percent drop.

In July, Quanta Computer and Compal Electronics forecast a 20 percent or more jump in their third-quarter shipments from the second quarter, powered by demand from emerging markets and for low-cost PCs. (US$1=T$31.5) (Reporting by Baker Li, Editing by Ken Wills)