Lanxess to take action after disappointing Q1
08/05/2013
Lanxess said the decline was “mainly due to lower volumes and lower selling prices”. It said it would reduce its capital expenditure budget for 2013 to EUR 600 million from the previously planned level of at least EUR 650 million.
“We are not immune to a sharp drop in demand, but we are responding to it proactively as always,” said company chairman, Axel Heitmann, on announcing the first-quarter results. At the start of the year, it announced the temporary closure of some of its performance polymers facilities.
It has now said it will take unspecificed “additional measures” in its performance chemicals segment, the part of the company that includes the leather chemicals business unit. The company did say, however, that its main concerns in performance chemicals are its products aimed at the construction industry and the automotive and tyre segments.
“These measures are not merely designed to achieve short-term savings,” Dr Hetimann said. “We aim to raise the competitiveness of our international sites in this segment for the medium and long term.” He added that the company expects economic improvement in the second half of this year. Asia, particularly China, will perform substantially better, whereas market conditions in Europe will remain difficult, he said.
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