Clariant boosts earnings

The Swiss speciality chemicals group, Clariant, has revealed a seven per cent rise in profits in 1999 to SFr553 million. The group said it would increase its dividend from SFr9 to SFr10 per registered share.

The Swiss speciality chemicals group, Clariant, has revealed a seven per cent rise in profits in 1999 to SFr553 million. The group said it would increase its dividend from SFr9 to SFr10 per registered share.

The increase in profit was achieved despite a modest one per cent increase in turnover last year, to SFr9.1 billion, and is slightly better than expected by most financial analysts.

Clariant said the final figure was boosted by a sales upturn at the end of last year, which helped to compensate for an overall weak performance in early 1999.

Clariant said it was confident about the prospects for 2000, while not giving a specific forecast for the current year.

“Now that the emerging upward trend in the markets has been confirmed by figures from the last few months of the new year, Clariant expects a continued upswing in the markets in which it is active in the year 2000,” the company said in a statement.

swissinfo with agencies