LEVERKUSEN, Germany (March 22, 2012)—Lanxess A.G. posted record sales and earnings, boosted by double-digit sales gains in all regions in 2011.
Net income jumped 33.5 percent on the year to about $667.6 million, with sales up 23.2 percent to $11.6 billion. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortizations rose by 25 percent to $1.51 billion, for a margin of 13.1 percent.
In North America, Lanxess saw sales climb by 24 percent to about $2 billion, with 40 percent of the increase coming from its Performance Polymers segment. In other regions, the materials firm sale sales increase 26 percent in Latin America; 23 percent in Asia-Pacific; 25 percent in Europe (excluding Germany), Middle East and Africa; 19 percent in Germany; and 28 percent in the five BRICS nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Performance polymers posted the highest sales of any business segment, with revenues up 37 percent to $6.73 billion. Lanxess said the butyl rubber and performance butadiene rubber units benefited from strong market demand for original equipment and replacement tires. The technical rubber products had increase sales because of rising demand from auto makers, with the unit growing by the largest percentage following the acquisition of DSM N.V.'s Keltan EPDM business.
The Performance Chemicals segment saw sales rise 7.7 percent $2.77 billion. The rubber chemicals and Rhein Chemie business units had considerably higher volumes because of sales to automotive-related businesses. Rhein Chemie's global sales grew 17 percent to $438 million.
Also on the year, Lanxess said it achieved sales of about $2 billion from products and technologies for “green mobility,” and plans to boost that total by 80 percent in 2012.