Three major units of Formosa Plastics Group (FPG, 台塑集團), the nation’s largest industrial conglomerate, yesterday reported monthly revenue increases amid rising sales volume.
Formosa Plastics Corp (台塑), the group’s flagship company, reported revenue of NT$15.13 billion (US$480 million) for last month, a 15.6 percent increase from September, but an 8.8 percent decline from the same period last year.
“Most of our factories completed annual maintenance last month, which helped lift overall sales volume during the period,” Formosa Plastics Corp president Jason Lin (林健男) told a news conference.
The company is upbeat about its sales outlook for the end of this year, as the utilization rate is expected to be higher than previous months.
The utilization rate this quarter is forecast to reach 91 percent, compared with 78 percent in the third quarter, company data showed.
As for demand, Lin said that increased spending on infrastructure in China and India would support demand for polyvinyl chloride.
Two other core units of the group also saw sales rise from September.
Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp (台灣化學纖維), which produces aromatics and styrenics, reported revenue of NT$26.14 billion for last month, up 2.8 percent from the previous month and 0.9 percent from a year ago.
Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化), the nation’s only privately owned oil refiner, posted revenue of NT$48.12 billion for last month, a 17.7 percent increase from a month earlier, but an annual decline of 10.2 percent.
Nan Ya Plastics Corp (南亞塑膠) was the only FPG company to report a monthly decline in sales.
The nation’s largest plastics manufacturer reported revenue of NT$22.77 billion for last month, falling 0.9 percent from the previous month and 1.8 percent from the same period last year.
The result could be attributed to weak demand for circuit boards, Nan Ya Plastics chairman Wu Chia-chau (吳嘉昭) told reporters, adding that some of the company’s downstream companies are digesting inventory.
Soaring demand for copper foil might help lift the company’s revenue in the near term, he said.
The group saw its combined revenue for last month increase 9.6 percent from the previous month to NT$112.16 billion, despite a 6 percent decline from a year ago.
In the first 10 months of the year, FPG reported cumulative revenue of NT$1.08 trillion, a 12.4 percent decline from the same period last year.
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