April 29-BASF, Bayer MaterialScience and Clariant have all reported encouraging Q1 results although the return of economic instability remains a threat to this nascent resurgence.
The Germany-based Bayer Group says it is returning to growth after a difficult 2009 as sales for the first quarter rose 5.3% to ?.3bn.
During the period, Bayer group sales roles 5.3% to ?.3bn, while operating profits went up 25.3% to ?.3bn. The Bayer MaterialScience (BMS) division performed particularly well, posting a clear recovery in an increasingly stabilising market environment .
BMS sales rose 35.5% to ?.2m. Within the division, the polyurethanes business expanded by 33.4% in the first quarter, with double-digit growth rates for all product groups. Polycarbonate sales increased 56.9% and sales of raw materials for coatings, adhesives and specialties were up 52.6%.
For 2010, Bayer is targeting overall sales growth of 5%.
BASF also posted a sales increase of the first quarter 2010, as sales went up 26.5% to ?5.4bn compared to the first quarter in 2009, thanks to rising demand across all divisions. Ebitda was up 65.5% to ?.6bn.
In Europe, sales were 12% higher than the same period last year and Ebit totalled ?.25bn.
Especially our industry business, that is the chemicals, plastics, performance products and functional solutions segments, grew substantially thanks to renewed demand from almost all customer industries, especially from the automotive, electric and electronic industries, particularly from the automotive, electric and electronic industries, said Chairman Dr J rgen Hambrecht.
Sales in the plastics division were substantially higher in Q1 2010 than the first quarter of 2009. Sales were up primarily because of higher volumes, while earnings increased because of higher demand.
Swiss chemicals major Clariant sounded a note of caution despite a Q1 profit of SFr6m ($5.5m), a major improvement on the same quarter last year when a net loss of CHF93m was reported. Sales rose 13% to SFr1.8bn
We have made good progress in our restructuring efforts and continued to deliver solid results on the back of lower costs, higher capacity utilisation and an improved demand due to an economic environment that developed more favourably than expected, said ceo Hariolf Kottmann.
The restructuring, which is expected to continue, has resulted in more than 3,000 job losses, slicing Clariant s workforce to about 17,500. There have also been plant closures.
Going forward, we expect the economic recovery to remain fragile and raw material costs to further rise heading into the seasonally weaker second half of the year. Consequently, we do not anticipate an operating performance at the same strong level of the first quarter, added Kottmann. As we have stated previously, 2009 and 2010 are restructuring years and our goal is to close the performance gap to our peers.
In spite of a better than expected economic environment in the first quarter the global economy will recover only slowly, believes Clariant. Based on this scenario and giving reference to the fact that the second half of the year is normally weaker than the first half, the company expects mid single digit sales growth compared with 2009.
The Germany-based Bayer Group says it is returning to growth after a difficult 2009 as sales for the first quarter rose 5.3% to ?.3bn.
During the period, Bayer group sales roles 5.3% to ?.3bn, while operating profits went up 25.3% to ?.3bn. The Bayer MaterialScience (BMS) division performed particularly well, posting a clear recovery in an increasingly stabilising market environment .
BMS sales rose 35.5% to ?.2m. Within the division, the polyurethanes business expanded by 33.4% in the first quarter, with double-digit growth rates for all product groups. Polycarbonate sales increased 56.9% and sales of raw materials for coatings, adhesives and specialties were up 52.6%.
For 2010, Bayer is targeting overall sales growth of 5%.
BASF also posted a sales increase of the first quarter 2010, as sales went up 26.5% to ?5.4bn compared to the first quarter in 2009, thanks to rising demand across all divisions. Ebitda was up 65.5% to ?.6bn.
In Europe, sales were 12% higher than the same period last year and Ebit totalled ?.25bn.
Especially our industry business, that is the chemicals, plastics, performance products and functional solutions segments, grew substantially thanks to renewed demand from almost all customer industries, especially from the automotive, electric and electronic industries, particularly from the automotive, electric and electronic industries, said Chairman Dr J rgen Hambrecht.
Sales in the plastics division were substantially higher in Q1 2010 than the first quarter of 2009. Sales were up primarily because of higher volumes, while earnings increased because of higher demand.
Swiss chemicals major Clariant sounded a note of caution despite a Q1 profit of SFr6m ($5.5m), a major improvement on the same quarter last year when a net loss of CHF93m was reported. Sales rose 13% to SFr1.8bn
We have made good progress in our restructuring efforts and continued to deliver solid results on the back of lower costs, higher capacity utilisation and an improved demand due to an economic environment that developed more favourably than expected, said ceo Hariolf Kottmann.
The restructuring, which is expected to continue, has resulted in more than 3,000 job losses, slicing Clariant s workforce to about 17,500. There have also been plant closures.
Going forward, we expect the economic recovery to remain fragile and raw material costs to further rise heading into the seasonally weaker second half of the year. Consequently, we do not anticipate an operating performance at the same strong level of the first quarter, added Kottmann. As we have stated previously, 2009 and 2010 are restructuring years and our goal is to close the performance gap to our peers.
In spite of a better than expected economic environment in the first quarter the global economy will recover only slowly, believes Clariant. Based on this scenario and giving reference to the fact that the second half of the year is normally weaker than the first half, the company expects mid single digit sales growth compared with 2009.
