Dutch life and materials sciences company DSM (Heerlen; www.dsm.com) reported a sharp rise in second quarter profits, aided by a cost savings programme, customer restocking and strong growth in China. Operating profits from continuing operations nearly tripled to EUR 246m, compared with EUR 85m for the same period last year. Net sales from continuing operations grew 28% to EUR 2.27 bn. Chairman Feike Sijbesma said DSM has emerged from the recession a stronger company and is continuing its transformation into a life sciences and materials sciences company. "Based on the current positive business environment we expect 2010 to be a strong year for DSM," he added. DSM pointed to China as a major growth area and expects to achieve net sales of USD 1.5 bn in the country this year. China sales grew 34% to USD 379m in the second quarter, and for the first six months of the year they were 64% higher at USD 784m.
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