Germany's Cognis has revealed record first half figures which, it believes, indicates genuine growth in consumer and industrial markets.
Building on strong Q1 results, the 
German-based chemicals specialist brought in excellent Q2 figures to lift the company to its best-ever half year performance. Sales of €1.5m ($1.9m) were helped by steady demand, up by 16.3% year on year, with sales volumes lifting by 12.% to early 2008 levels.
Overall figures showed operating earnings (EBITDA) of €281m ($357m) for the first half of 2010, up 67.5% year-on-year. Although higher sales led the way, a focus on high-value specialist products also added to the success, with Asia-Pacific driving the regional results. Foreign exchange benefits and stable operating and management costs helped the figures.
Profitability was turned around from a net loss of €20m ($25m) last year, to a €109m ($138.8m) profit in 2010. This included a very strong sales contribution from the company's Functional Products division, which supplies high performance Synlubes.
Of particular interest, with areas of Europe starting to experience strong growth, were the comments of Cognis CEO Antonio Trius: "The development we are experiencing indicates not just a recovery, but real growth in consumer and industrial markets. We were able to take full advantage of this growth due to our strategy of offering innovative products that are aligned with the wellness and sustainability trends."