International. Following a strong performance in the second quarter, specialty chemicals company Lanxess has specified its profit forecast for 2018. The Group now expects an increase in operating profit at the high end of the five to ten percent guidance that was presented in May.
In the previous year, EBITDA before special items was approximately €925 million. The contribution of Arlanxeo, the joint venture between Lanxess and Saudi Aramco for synthetic rubber, is not taken into account in the full-year forecast for 2018 and, effective immediately, will no longer be reported in the Group's sales and operating result.
In the second quarter, Lanxess' global sales increased 6.8 percent to EUR 1.83 billion versus EUR 1.71 billion in the prior-year quarter. Pre-exceptional EBITDA improved by 3.6 percent to €290 million compared to €280 million in the prior-year quarter. Overall positive earnings performance was primarily driven by three reasons: first, the contribution of Chemtura's former businesses.
They constitute a material part of the specialty additives segment, which recorded the best quarterly result since the acquisition of the U.S. company. Secondly, the adjustment of sales prices due to higher raw material costs and, thirdly, the synergies achieved from the integration of Chemtura had a positive impact on profits. In the second quarter of 2018, EBITDA margin before the special items was still at a solid level, at 15.9 percent, despite significantly adverse currency effects, compared to 16.4 percent a year ago.
