MOSCOW (MRC) -- A. Schulman Inc. fiscal third-quarter earnings fell 69% amid continued sluggishness in European markets and higher-than-expected costs in Latin America, where the company has been consolidating its Brazilian operations, said Marketwatch.
Chairman and Chief Executive Joseph M. Gingo said, "The challenges we experienced in the third quarter in Latin America are temporary and not systemic in nature."
The maker of plastic compounds, which supplies a wide swath of markets such as packaging, construction, electronics and personal care, had been hurt in recent quarters by its heavy exposure to Europe's economy. Since 2010, the company has executed a series of cost-cutting programs in Europe as demand has waned.
During May, A. Schulman said it would expand its restructuring plans in its Europe, Middle East and Africa region--including job cuts. The company at the time also made efforts to sell its its rotational compounding business in Brisbane, Australia. The company also has been consolidating two plants in Brazil into one new plant, efforts that resulted in greater-than-expected costs and disruptions in the latest period.
As MRC wrote earlier, A. Schulman Inc.fiscal second-quarter earnings rose 30% with a boost from a tax benefit, though the company said it was continuing restructuring efforts in Europe to address weakening market trends and was initiating consolidation efforts in Brazil.
A. Schulman is a global plastics supplier, headquartered in Akron, Ohio, and a leading international supplier of high-performance plastic compounds and resins, which are used as raw materials in a variety of markets. A. Schulman has 33 manufacturing facilities globally. It reported net sales of USD2.2 billion for the fiscal year ended August 31, 2011.
MRC