CRH sees rate of decline easing
Building materials group CRH said the rate of decline in its sales moderated in the third quarter of the year, a trend it expects to continue into the final quarter of the year.
In an interim management statement this morning, the group said like-for-like sales fell 4 per cent in the three-month period, compared to a 10 per cent recorded in the first half of the year. In the nine months to the end of September, underlying sales at CRH have fallen eight per cent.
In its Europe materials operations, sales fell five per cent on a like-for-like basis for the quarter. Its products division in the region, meanwhile, saw an improving trend in like-for-like sales continue in the third quarter, resulting in a decline of only one per cent. This compares with a 10 per cent fall in the first half of the year.
CRH said its Americas business was also seeing a moderation in sales decline, and expects it to record a full year EBITDA of US$1bn, compared to US$1.23bn in 2009.
The rate of profit decline at the CRH group also eased in the third quarter, as the group’s ongoing cost reduction measures also had an impact. EBITDA for the third quarter of 2010 were €700m, compared with €750m in 2009.
Published under Cement News
