Sherwin-Williams notches record sales after raising paint prices

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Sherwin-Williams topped sales and profit estimates for the third quarter, notching record revenue for the period, after hiking prices for paint and other products, said the company.

The manufacturer of coatings implemented a 10% price increase across the Americas on Sept. 6 after noting higher input costs and supply chain challenges. In the July announcement, the company also said that it was raising prices in two other operating groups, although the amount wasn’t disclosed.

On Tuesday, Sherwin-Williams (ticker: SHW) said adjusted profit for the third quarter was USD2.83 a share and sales hit a record USD6.05 billion. Analysts had expected earnings of USD2.56 a share on sales of USD5.79 billion.

Same-store sales — or sales across stores in the U.S. and Canada that had been open for more than 12 months — increased 20.7% in the third quarter as “we are seeing strong realization from our September ..increase,” CEO John Morikis said. The business continued to capture demand across all professional architectural markets, he added.

The stock rose 4% to USD221.20 during morning trading on Tuesday.

The company maintained its earnings outlook for the full year at USD8.50 to USD8.80 a share. In July, it cut its forecast from a range of USD9.25 to USD9.65 due to inflation and demand pressures in Europe, China, and North America. It saw weak trends among consumers using paints for do-it-yourself projects in the second quarter, though the professional segment was strong.

We remind, Sherwin-Williams Company has announced an agreement to acquire Industria Chimica Adriatica (ICA), an Italian designer, manufacturer and distributor of industrial wood coatings used for kitchen cabinets, furniture and decor, building products, flooring and other specialty applications.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- China’s Wanhua Chemical has achieved on-spec products from its new 40,000 tonne/year polyamide12/nylon12 (PA12/nylon12) facility, according to a company statement.

This indicates that Wanhua has fully mastered core technology of PA12 with whole industrial chain manufacturing capability and can produce qualified products consistently in large scale, it said.

Featuring low density, low-temperature stability, high-impact resistance and strong chemical resistance, PA12 provides diversified solutions for manufacturing industries, such as automobile, oil and gas, sports and cables.

The plant started operated on 18 October.

Wanhua Chemical also plans to increase the capacity of its polycarbonate (PC) plant in Yantai in Shandong province by 140,000 tons per year to 340,000 tons per year. The expansion will be carried out by reengineering the existing 200 ktpa PC production project at the site. The company is currently seeking environmental approval for the plan. The timing of the project is not disclosed.

Wanhua Chemical was founded on December 20, 1998, and is the first listed joint-stock enterprise after reorganization in Shandong Province, China. The company mainly produces diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI), including pure MDI and polymerized MDI used in the production of polyurethane (PU).
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Vietnam's largest refinery will run operations at full capacity in the fourth quarter to ensure stable supplies of petroleum products for the domestic market, its owner Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical (NSRP) said, as per Rueters.

The 200,000-barrel-per-day refinery will supply 2.4 MM-2.5 MM cubic meters of fuel products in the October-December period as committed, it said in a statement. The statement comes days after several petrol stations in southern Vietnam shut down or limited their sales, citing financial difficulties, according to state media.

"Recently, the fuel supply from abroad to Vietnam has faced many difficulties that have possibly led to shortage of petroleum products at some petrol agents and retail gas stations," NSRP said.

On Thursday, the country's other refinery, Binh Son, said it had ramped up its production to meet domestic fuel demand and was operating at 109% of its designed capacity. The two refineries combined meet around 70% of Vietnam's refined fuel needs.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Industry and Trade asked the State Bank of Vietnam to help local fuel traders have better access to foreign currencies to pay for imports, as they face a steep increase in prices.

Vietnam's refined fuel imports in the first nine months of this year rose 22.7% from a year earlier to 6.52 MMt, but the import value rose 131% to USD6.8 billion, according to government customs data.

NSRP is 35.1% owned by Japan's Idemitsu Kosan Co, 35.1% by Kuwait Petroleum, 25.1% by Vietnam's state oil firm PetroVietnam and 4.7% by Mitsui Chemicals Inc.

We remind, Vietnam's Binh Son refinery has ramped up its production to meet domestic fuel demand and was operating at 109% of its designed capacity. The 130,000-barrel-per-day facility, owned by Binh Son Refining and Petrochemical accounts for a third of Vietnam's demand for refined petroleum products. "The refinery could increase its operations further, to 110% of capacity, to stabilize the market," Binh Son deputy chief executive Cao Tuan Si said in a government statement.

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MOSCOW (MRC) -- Chemours Co (CC.N) on Tuesday beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter profit and revenue as raised prices for its specialty and industrial chemicals helped the company offset higher costs, sending its shares up about 3% in extended trading, said Reuters.

Chemicals makers have been looking at measures to beat soaring energy and raw material costs as well as a slower-than-expected demand recovery in Europe and Asia. Last week, larger rival Dow Inc (DOW.N) outlined plans to cut costs by USD1 billion next year.

"Our Thermal & Specialized Solutions (TSS) and Advanced Performance Materials (APM) segments continued to deliver strong results despite macroeconomic headwinds and are both poised to set full-year records," said Mark Newman, president and chief executive officer at Chemours.

Last month, Chemours cut its full-year forecast for adjusted earnings, citing low demand and higher costs mainly in its TT segment.

Sales at its TSS segment, which produces refrigerants, propellants and other specialty chemicals, jumped 31% in the three months ended Sept. 30 and that at its APM segment, which makes components used in semi-conductor manufacturing, increased 26%.

Chemours' revenue from its largest segment Titanium Technologies - which produces the titanium dioxide pigment used in coatings, plastics, and laminates - fell about 3% to USD877 million in the quarter. The company's quarterly net income stood at USD240 million, or USD1.52 per share, compared with USD214 million, or USD1.27 per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, the company earned USD1.24 per share, beating analysts' consensus of USD1.04 per share, as per Refinitiv data. Net revenue rose 5.8% to USD1.78 billion, which also beat analysts' expectation of USD1.68 billion, driven by 18% higher quarterly pricing.

We remind, The Chemours Company (Wilmington, Del.) announced that it will be expanding its Chemours Opteon YF (HFO-1234yf) capacity to help meet customer needs as they continue transitioning to lower GWP refrigerants. The Opteon YF and YF blends refrigerants are now used in millions of vehicles and thousands of retail stores around the world, with zero ozone depletion potential (ODP) and global warming potential (GWP) that is significantly lower than the legacy refrigerants.

Chemours is committed to leadership in responsible manufacturing, and this capacity investment will contribute to its goal of shifting the company’s product portfolio to offerings that contribute to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). Chemours is evaluating potential locations in the United States and Europe for the investment in accordance with applicable regulatory frameworks and is particularly interested in supporting the local communities where they operate.
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MOSCOW (MRC) -- A proposed US refined product export ban would save US consumers at the gasoline pump but pose significant challenges and costs to US and global refining systems, according to a recent analysis from Wood Mackenzie, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.

Using its Refinery Supply Model, Wood Mackenzie estimates that a proposed US oil product ban could save US consumers USD5 B in gasoline prices. It would also increase USD2 B in distillate costs to European trading partners and erase USD30 B in earning from US refiners, while boosting earnings for refiners abroad.

“Our models show that the potential ban would save US consumers on gasoline, but any potential savings would be based on new global trade routes being established efficiently, which is not a guarantee,” said Alan Gelder, VP Refining, Chemicals & Oil at Wood Mackenzie. “Prices could go higher if there are disruptions in this process, eroding US consumer savings. In the long-term, US refineries could see lower future investments, which threatens future US supply."

Wood Mackenzie estimates that a US refined product export ban would create a 1.4 MMbpd distillate gasoline supply gap globally and would decrease US crude runs by 1.5 MMbpd, primarily affecting Gulf Coast refiners. The US would still require gasoline imports to meet demand.

To fill this supply gap would require record export levels from China, Russia and the Middle East. “There is enough global capacity to cover US exports to Europe and Latin America, but it would require extraordinary circumstances, record exports and elevated refinery utilization levels from China, Russia and the Middle East,” said Raul Calzada, Research Analyst, North America Refining Assets. Caldaza added: “Refined products from China would have to more than double their 2021 totals to fulfill European demands.”

We remind, China's diesel exports in September surged to their highest in more than a year while aviation fuel shipments were the most in 29 months as refiners rushed to cash in on robust export margins. Exports of diesel fuel last month more than doubled from a year earlier to 1.73 MMt last month, the highest monthly rate since July 2021, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.
That was up from 830,000 tons in August and 780,000 tons a year ago.
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