Industrial process fluids maker Quaker Houghton saw profit rise in the third quarter for the first time in a year on the back of higher selling prices and strong growth in the Americas.Operating profit of $44.6mn in the three months to end-September rose by 24pc from year-earlier levels and from $31.9mn in the second quarter to the highest since early 2021. Profit had fallen in each of the previous three quarters.Net profit still fell in the third quarter, dipping by 17pc to $25.9mn.Operating profit rose as a 10pc increase in sales to $492.2mn outpaced a 9pc rise in costs.Sales rose faster than costs for the first time in more than a year.Quaker Houghton’s end-markets range from the transport sector to steel-making, power generation and aerospace and defense.Higher sales mostly reflected a rise in selling prices to offset higher prices for raw materials and other rising costs.Global base oils prices eased in the third quarter of the year from the previous three months. But they remained much higher than levels at the start of the year.Quaker Houghton’s sales in the Americas rose by 24pc, outpacing the rise in total sales and countered a fall in revenue in the Europe, Mideast Gulf and Africa (EMEA) region and in Asia-Pacific..Firmer sales in the Americas and weaker demand in other markets mirrored a similar trend among other major global lubricant blenders.The trend boosted the Americas’ share of Quaker Houghton’s sales to 38pc of the total, up from less than 33pc in 2021.The lower sales in EMEA and Asia partly reflected the strength of the US dollar versus other currencies. Sales volumes in those markets also fell from the second quarter amid a slowdown in demand.Quaker Houghton expected the trend to continue through the current quarter.“We expect the current uneven demand environment and seasonal demand trends to weigh on our end markets in the fourth quarter,” Chief Executive Officer Andy Tometich said in a statement.Quaker Houghton’s higher sales in the third quarter helped lift operating profit margin to 9.1pc. The margin was up from less than 7pc in each of the previous three quarters and the highest since early 2021. .Quaker Houghton’s Q2 profit falls.Base Oil News stories and analysis also available on ICIS platform
