International.
AkzoNobel reported a second quarter with positive profitability developments across all three business areas, despite shift pressures and a challenging market environment.
EBIT increased 9% to €491 million (€). Overall volumes improved by 1%, although this increase was not reflected in revenue for the second quarter, which had a decrease of 6% to €3.7 billion, strongly affected by currencies. The return on sales improved to 13.2% and the return on investment rose to 15.1%.
"During the quarter we increased volumes, while improving profitability in all business areas, which shows the ongoing resilience of our business. The market environment in 2016 remains uncertain, with difficult conditions in several countries and segments. Deflationary pressures and headwinds in currencies are expected to continue. Our ongoing focus will remain on driving continuous improvement and organic growth of our business areas," commented Ton Büchner, CEO of the company.
In decorative paintings, volumes remained low in Latin America and slightly lower in Europe, with an overall turnover of 7%. The company launched its Unexpected Courts project in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It's about using paint in an imaginative way to create areas where children were inspired to try different sports, such as basketball, hockey and volleyball in amazing places.
Source: AkzoNobel.
