The Cookson group reported a 13% year-on-year fall in sales by its Perfomance Materials (electronics) division in the first half of 2012, although the decline partly reflected lower tin and silver prices. The division’s trading profit rose by 11% to UK£50.0 million (US$78.1 million), while its return on net sales value, excluding metal costs, rose from 21.8% to 24.4%.
In a statement the group was moderately upbeat on market conditions: “Electronics end-markets have been reasonably stable during the half year with a continued strong performance in the Americas and Asia-Pacific more than offsetting weaker end-market conditions in Europe…. The division normally sees a slightly stronger second half compared to the first due to the third quarter peak in electronic equipment production ahead of Thanksgiving and Christmas consumer spending.”
In the Joining Technologies (solders and related products) part of the division revenue of £224m (US$350m) was 17% lower than the first half of 2011. Excluding the value of tin and silver, net sales value was UK£98 million, 9% lower than the first half of 2011. “This reflects the continuation of the successful strategy to focus on higher margin, enhanced technology products, and exiting more commoditised products such as bar solder.” Cookson noted.
“For solder products, which account for three-quarters of Joining Technologies revenue, sales of higher margin solder pastes were unchanged by weight compared to the first half of 2011 while bar solder was down 14%, partially reflecting the continuing shift from wave soldering to surface mount technology for the production of PCBs. Sales of tape-and-reel packaged pre-forms, which are manufactured shapes of solder used in joining applications requiring high physical strength, grew by 9% driven, in particular, by smartphone applications. The recycling, reclaim business in the US and China, in which scrap solder generated by our customers’ production processes is reclaimed back into solder alloys for sale to third parties or for reuse within the business, also performed well in the period, notwithstanding lower metal prices.”
