Carbon black maker Longxing reports 2018 profit jump

Xingtai, Hebei – Chinese carbon black maker Longxing Chemical has seen its net profit increase 166% year on year to €17 million (133 million yuan) in 2018.

Revenue last year rose 14% to €403 million, 93% of which was from carbon black and 4% from white carbon black., the company announced 15 Feb.

The average carbon black price in 2018 climbed 22% compared with a year ago, according to Longxing’s annual report.

The company’s net profit excluding non-recurring items during the period increased by 116% to €14 million.

Last year Longxing produced 450 kilotonnes of carbon black and sold 440 kilotonnes, said the annual report.

The company claims to be among the top 3 carbon black maker in the China, which has an overall production of around 7.5 million tonnes.

Over the past two years China’s annual carbon black capacity expanded by 1.2 million tonnes, outgrowing total demand, said the annual report.

Carbon black prices continued to rise, as a number of plants in Hebei, Shandong and Shanxi provinces suspended production due to tightened environmental regulations last year, the company’s board secretary Liu Feizhou told ERJ.

“Longxing is among the sector’s best in waste treatment facilities and our production hasn’t been impacted,” said Liu.

According to Liu, some of the competitors have resumed production and carbon black price has been falling back so far this year.