Belgian glassmaker Glaverbel said its third-quarter sales rose 17.7%, but full-year group net profits were unlikely to exceed year-earlier results.
The company expects full-year operating results to …
Belgian glassmaker Glaverbel said its third-quarter sales rose 17.7%, but full-year group net profits were unlikely to exceed year-earlier results. The company expects full-year operating results to exceed year-ago levels. “On the other hand, the net result – group share – will probably not be higher than last year, due to the higher financial charges associated with financing of the acquisition of PPG Glass Europe, together with higher taxes than in 1998,” Glaverbel said in a statement. Glaverbel reported a third-quarter sales increase of 17.7% to Euros 357 million. Sales for the first nine months of 1999 rose 26% to Euros 1.1 billion, reflecting consolidation of the European glass activities of PPG which were acquired in September 1998. But on a same consolidation scope, year-to-date sales fell 3%, due to the first two quarters being more difficult than expected, according to Glaverbel. The belgian glassworks said the average price of raw glass would remain significantly lower in the second half of 1999 than the year-ago period, despite a current upturn in prices on some markets. Volumes are sustained in the automotive sector. “The improvements in productivity and the synergies now being obtained thanks to the merger with PPG Glass Europe are, nevertheless, not enough to make up for the contractual price decrease for certain current models,” the company said. Although full-year operating profits are expected to exceed those of a year ago, Glaverbel said margins would be lower. In the 1998 full year, Glaverbel had group net profit of Euros 41.4 million and operating income of Euros 93.5 million.