Frances Plastic Omnium posts 19% sales drop

By Charlotte Eyre
France-based plastics manufacturer and auto supplier Plastic Omnium says revenue for the first half of the year fell 19% to €1.18bn because of the global drop in car production.
 
¡°Global production of passenger cars and trucks plummeted by 25 to 50% in the first half, depending on the region, and local communities in Europe either postponed or reduced their operating expenses,¡± said the firm
 
However, consolidated net profit rose to €8m, up from €2.5m in the first half of the year 2008, thanks to the firm¡¯s €95m reduction in spending. Plastic Omnium also says it was not affected by the bankruptcy filings of General Motors, Chrysler and Saab.
 
The firm¡¯s net debt totaled €440m by the end of June with net debt-to-equity of 99%. This compared with net debt of €560m and debt-to-equity of 128% at the end of last year.
 
Looking forward, Plastic Omnium foresees stronger results from the Environment division at the end of the year.
 
However, the automobile division is likely to experience a slowdown, despite signs of an upturn in production.
 
"We expect the third quarter to be above the first and second quarters, and we see a significant drop in the fourth quarter," chief executive Laurent Burelle told Reuters. "Today we think that we are at a low in terms of volume, and we think this low will last 18 months, in other words the second half of 2009 and the whole of 2010."

Address: Bibo Road, Zhangjiang High-technology Park, Shanghai, China
Tel: 0086-21-3637-6177
Fax: 0086-21-3637-6177
Skype: eastfilters