Kemira hit by Russias farm woes


16 February 1999


Kemira hit by Russia’s farm woes


KEMIRA, the Finnish chemicals and fertiliser group, reported a sharp fall in full year pre-tax profits to FM579m (£68m) from FM864m.

It blamed problems in Russias agricultural sector, which hit fertiliser exports.

The company said sales in the 12 months to 31 December were steady at FM14.35bn against FM14.39bn a year earlier.

But the agricultural division had faced difficult competition with downward pressure on prices in fertilisers, caused mostly by increased supply and Chinas absence as a buyer of nitrogen products.

The agricultural division reported an operating loss in the last four months of the year of FM115m.

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