DJ RHI Group records double-digit growth rates in the first three quarters of the year
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ots.CorporateNews transmitted by euro adhoc. The issuer is responsible for
the content of this announcement.
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In the first three quarters of 2008, RHI, the world market leader in
refractories, increased revenues to EUR 1,220.9 million, up 12.4% on the same
period in 2007. EBITDA rose by 15.1% to EUR 184.9 million; EBIT improved by
19.6% to EUR 148.0 million. At 12.1%, the EBIT margin thus clearly exceeded the
prior-year figure of 11.4%.
3rd Quarter Q1-Q3
in EUR million 2008 2007*) 2008 2007*)
Revenues 414.1 362.1 1,220.9 1,085.9
EBITDA 62.2 54.7 184.9 160.7
EBIT 49.9 42.1 148.0 123.7
EBIT margin 12.1% 11.6% 12.1% 11.4%
Diluted earnings per share (in EUR) 0.92 0.70 2.69 2.04
*) adjusted
Outlook
RHI expects a continued satisfactory business development until the end of the
year, although the growth rates recorded so far in 2008 are unlikely to continue
in the coming year due to significant production cuts in the steel industry.
The further development of the Steel Division in 2009 will be heavily dependent
on the global environment, with employment in the automotive, construction and
mechanical engineering sectors being decisive for its customer industry. In the
Industrial Division, it remains to be seen whether projects will be postponed.
While the real estate crisis in some regions of the world slows down cement
consumption, the glass industry currently expects little impact of the financial
crisis on planned investments. Major investment projects, especially in the
nickel, copper and zinc segments, are influenced by the sharply dropped metal
and alloy prices, which are leading to order postponements. The Raw
Materials/Production Division will suffer from the high energy and raw material
costs in the next few months. The additional supply with own raw materials from
China will have a positive effect on the result in 2009.
Details on the quarterly result are available on the RHI´s website
www.rhi-ag.com. The online version of the quarterly financial report will be
available on the RHI´s website on 30 October 2008.
end of announcement euro adhoc
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 27, 2008 17:53 ET (21:53 GMT)
