BRAZIL – Eucatex, one of Brazil’s largest panels manufacturers, with operations also in the paint and varnish, laminated flooring and doors segments, registered net income of R$4.4 million in the first quarter of 2016, an increase of 107.3% from the same period in 2015.

According to José Antônio Goulart Carvalho, Executive Vice-President and Investor Relations Officer, the highlight of the quarter was the 50.6% growth in export revenue, which now accounts for 17% of total revenues. “In 2015, the Company prepared itself to increase exports by modernizing and adjusting its product lines to meet this market, which brought positive results in 1Q16.”

In terms of volume, exports of wood panels increased 56.3% from the first quarter of 2015. This result is related to the growth in sales of fiberboard (+31.1%) and T-HDF (+81.0%), whose exports were still incipient in 2014 and which accounted for a greater share of the export mix in 2015. “The substantial increase in exports is largely due to changes in the production process and we will maintain the growth pace this year,” Mr. Carvalho said. In addition to the export market, the Company’s strategy seeks to reduce costs. “Eucatex has sought to renegotiate all its contracts and also thoroughly analyzed the nature of all its expenses, which resulted in an increase below inflation in the period. These practices will continue throughout 2016 even more intensively,” he explained.

Just as the ABRAMAT (Brazilian Association of Construction Materials) Index, which measures the performance of construction materials, decreased 17.3%, sales volume in the Paint Segment also declined 17.3%, negatively impacting net revenue by 8.7% in the first quarter of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015. 

Eucatex Results January – March 1Q

Million EUR