Cabot carbon black earnings up despite Asian sales dip

Boston, Massachusetts – Cabot Corp has posted a 9.4-percent, year-on-year rise in third quarter earnings (EBIT) at its reinforcement materials business, to $35 million  – despite a sharp drop in sales.

Sales of reinforcement materials fell 24 percent to $270 million, said Cabot, noting that the earnings gains were due mainly to cost-saving initiatives, the company reported 28 July.

Cabot recorded a 2-percent fall in rubber black sales year-on-year, including an 8-percent drop in Asia, partly offset by increases of 6 percent and 2 percent in the Americas and EMEA respectively.

The volumes decline in Asia was linked to a “challenging macro-economic environment” and the closure of Cabot’s Merak plant. In the Americas, the decline was due to problems in South American markets.

Looking ahead, though, the company forecast a “strengthening of results” from the reinforcement materials segment – helped by lower raw materials costs.