Polymer giant hit by oil & gas woes

LANCASHIRE-based advanced polymer specialist Victrex has experienced a dip in sales as the oil and gas and electronics sectors continue to suffer.

In an statement released at its annual meeting, the company said its overall first-quarter performance outside of those sectors was solid.

But group revenue was down 6% to £56m (Q1 2015 £59.8m) with group sales volume 860 tonnes – 11% down on the prior year (Q1 2015: 967 tonnes).

“Based on the outlook for Oil & Gas and lower Consumer Electronics volumes, we expect this softness to continue through the first half year,” the statement released by the Thornton Cleveleys-based company said.

David Hummel, chief executive, said: “Whilst we expect the softness in Q1 to continue through the first half year, our latest view for the second half, including Consumer Electronics being much more weighted to the second half, points towards a stronger performance, compared to the second half of 2015.

“These assumptions mean we are comfortable with current expectations for the full year.

“Looking further ahead, our medium to longer term portfolio remains attractive, alongside our focused strategy of moving further downstream and an increasingly value-added proposition.”