Although its worldwide net sales in Q2 were flat in constant currency (dropping by 7% when factoring in exchange rates), Mattel’s executives are optimistic about the progress the struggling toyco made towards returning to growth and profitability.

While still in the early stages of implementing its rapid turnaround following its well-documented drop in sales, a bright spot for Mattel this past quarter was improved performance in its core brands and strong momentum in China and Russia.

In Q2 in constant currency, North American sales declined 2% while international sales were up 5%. However, reported North American gross sales dropped by 3% and international gross sales declined by 10%.

Mattel’s operating income for the quarter was US$23 million and adjusted earnings per share came in at US$0.01, compared to US$38.1 million and US$0.05, respectively, in 2014. The board of directors also declared a dividend of US$0.38 cents per share, which is on par with Q3 in 2014.

Turning to specific brands, gross sales for Mattel girls and boys brands were US$601.8 million, a 3% decline in constant currency from last year. Worldwide Barbie brand sales were also down 11%, however, year-to-date Barbie sales are up on a global basis, driven by strong performance in the US, partially offset by a decline internationally.

In addition, worldwide gross sales for other girls brand were down 6%, and its entertainment business was down by 16%. The Wheels category, which includes Hot Wheels and Matchbox brands, had a banner quarter with gross sales up by 26%.

Looking at other key Mattel brands, Fisher-Price gross sales came in at US$336.8 million for a 9% increase and American Girl raked in US$84.2 million to climb 1% from last year.

Finally, in construction and arts/crafts, which includes MEGA BLOKS and RoseArt, sales came in at US$64.8 million. (Mattel acquired Mega Brands in 2014 for US$460 million.)

Going forward, Mattel does have a lot of new projects in the works (i.e. Quirky, Autodesk, DC Super Hero girls) and the highly anticipated View-Master collaboration with Google is due out this fall.