20/02/2002

US slump hurts Smurfit group profits

Irish packaging company Jefferson Smurfit has blamed the worst market conditions in the United States since the mid-seventies for a 26 per cent slump in annual profits.

The group, which employs 3,000 people at 37 sites in the UK, saw demand collapse in the US as the economic slowdown began to bite. Higher energy costs also affected Smurfit's US subsidiaries, halving profits in North America in 2001.

Overall, the company's pre-tax profits fell to £199 million in the year to December 31, down from £271 million in 2000.

Smurfit, whose multi-millionaire boss Michael Smurfit is set to stand down as chief executive in the coming months, is the largest maker of container boards and liner boards for corrugated boxes in the world.

The group said it believed the performance was "credible" given the prevailing demand and the current economic conditions, particularly in the US.

(MB)

Related Northern Ireland Business News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

30 August 2001
Jefferson Smurfit Group report rise in sales
Jefferson Smurfit Group (JSG), the paper-based packaging group based in Dublin, have reported its interim pre-tax profit unchanged year-on-year at £116 million and EPS of 9.1 per cent.
07 August 2002
Ulster Bank half-year profits show 11% rise
Half-year results posted by the Royal Bank of Scotland have revealed that its Ulster Bank subsidiary has seen a massive £25 million hike in pre-tax profits compared to the same period last year.
22 February 2002
Alliance & Leicester reveal lower profits for 2001
The Alliance & Leicester has unveiled lower profits, blaming higher investment costs. The UK banking group revealed on Friday February 22 that pre-tax profits for 2001 fell to £396 million, down from £447 million in the previous year.
13 July 2001
JURY’S PROFITS UNTOUCHED BY FMD
THE impact of foot-and-mouth disease seems to have had little bearing on the success of the Jury’s Doyle Group which on Thursday recorded an increase in pre-tax profits of 11 percent.
07 August 2001
BASF issue another profits warning
Chemicals giant BASF have issued another profits warning as second quarter results revealed a drop in profits of euro 131 million, down around 15 per cent on the same period in 2000. The interim report noted that in 2001 BASF were expecting a decline in income from operations from ongoing business”.