l Industrial Materials Division records seven-fold increase in operating profit compared with the same period last year∙∙∙ recovery trend continues for three consecutive quarters

l Upgrading the structure of existing businesses and securing new growth engines∙∙∙ leaping forward as a company specializing in high value-added materials next year

SKC (President & CEO: Lee Wan-Jae) has recorded outstanding sales of KRW 636.6 billion and an operating profit of KRW 40.5 billion in the third quarter of this year. This marks a rather good performance despite the slowdown in the global economy resulting from the US-China trade dispute. Notably, the Industrial Materials Division maintained its recovery trend, recording a seven-fold increase in its operating profit compared with the same period last year.

SKC announced the positive results of the third quarter on November 1 at a meeting held in the conference room of Cape Investment & Securities, with the participation of Lee Yong-Sun, head of the Industrial Materials Division; Jang Ji-Hyeop, head of the PO/POD Headquarters; Oh Joon-Lok, head of the Growth Business Division; Pi Seong-Hyeon, head of the Management Support Division and other SKC ecxecutives.

The Industrial Materials Division has posted sales of KRW 271.7 billion and an operating profit of KRW 13.5 billion. Remarkably, its operating profit is more than seven times higher than the figure recorded for the same period last year and about 14% higher than that of the second quarter of this year, thus maintaining a solid recovery trend for a third consecutive quarter. Such an outstanding performance is attributable to the increased sale of environmentally-friendly products such as eco label and PLA Film and to the stable prices of raw materials for PET. The Industrial Materials Division is also expected to post a better performance than last year in the fourth quarter, even though the last quarter of the year is usually a low season. 

The Chemicals Division has recorded sales of KRW 188 billion and an operating profit of KRW 24.8 billion. While sales have decreased due to a delay in business recovery, its operating profit has been maintained at a stable level of 13.2% as a result of the PO maintaining stable sales quantity and the PG continuing with its marketing strategy of discovering large global client companies. The Division plans to expand its sales in the fourth quarter despite the ongoing uncertainties by actively targeting new markets for personal hygiene products, etc.

The Growth Business Division has recorded sales of KRW 176.9 billion and an operating profit of KRW 2.2 billion. While the demand for ceramic parts for semiconductor materials fell due to deterioration in the external environment, the sales of CMP materials increased by 35% from the previous quarter. In the fourth quarter, the Growth Business Division will push ahead with the additional certification of CMP slurry and improve its performance through the consecutive sale of wet chemical products to China. In Beauty Healthcare, the Dicision will aim to boost sales of the new ‘ReXRe’ mask pack product among others.

This year, SKC has made continuous efforts to innovate its business structure by upgrading the existing businesses. As a result, the company laid the foundations for the global advancement of its chemical business by signing an agreement with PIC of Kuwait in August for the establishment of a joint venture company, while simultaneously loading a new growth engine. Meanwhile, in June, the company decided to acquire KCFT, a manufacturer of copper foil for secondary batteries. SKC will finalize the process of acquisition quickly during the fourth quarter in a bid to make a new leap forward early next year. 

A spokesperson for SKC said, “The year 2019 will be recorded as the year in which the industrial materials business began to change with the introduction of high value-added products _ base_d on performance improvements achieved through the innovation of BM; the chemical business pushed ahead with its plans for global expansion with high value-added products; and the growth business prepared for higher growth in earnest with the certification of various products. Next year, SKC will leap ahead as a company specializing in high value-added materials using the newly loaded growth engines.” [-The end-]


 

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