13th Dec 2007 07:01
Rexam PLC13 December 2007 Rexam Pre Close trading statement Underlying trading for the second half of 2007 is anticipated to be broadly inline with management's expectations at the time of Rexam's Interim Resultsannouncement, excluding the impacts of foreign exchange and a one-off fair valueinventory adjustment arising on the acquisition of O-I Plastics. Beverage Cans is performing well, driven by strong volume growth in Europe andSouth America, with good pricing and improved mix in Europe. Volume growth inBrazil has been mitigated by the Brazilian Real which has strengthened againstthe US dollar by approximately 10% in the second half, which increased localcurrency costs on translation. The North American business is recovering fromthe effects of the strike in the first half. Our growth capex programme is wellon track, despite start up delays in our new end manufacturing plant in Manaus,Brazil. Plastic Packaging is seeing a continuation of the trends experienced in thefirst half. Growth in Pharma is driving performance in the Healthcare division. In Personal Care, the strong performance in Dispensing Systems and therecovery of Make up partially offset softer volumes in Home and Personal Care.Lower demand in North America is affecting trading in the Closures division. In the second half, the US dollar has continued to weaken against sterling, andthis will affect our reported results due to the translation impact on our USdollar earnings. In addition, energy and freight costs have been affected bythe higher price of oil and this is expected to continue into 2008. The integration of O-I Plastics, acquired in July 2007, is proceeding well andis set to deliver the expected synergies from 2008 onwards. However, the 2007operating profit for O-I Plastics will be affected by an estimated additional£5m fair value inventory accounting charge arising on acquisition. Rexam will announce its preliminary results for the year ending 31 December 2007on 20 February 2008. 13 December 2007 About Rexam Rexam is a leading global consumer packaging company and the largest beveragecan maker in the world. Our vision is to be the leading global consumerpackaging company. We are business partners to some of the world's most famousand successful consumer brands as well as young, entrepreneurial start-ups. Weoffer a broad range of packaging services and solutions for differentindustries, using different materials and technologies. Three thingscharacterise us - leadership in our industry, our commitment to innovation andour passion to deliver exceptional value. Following the acquisition of O-IPlastics, Rexam's sales from ongoing operations are approximately £3.7 billion.We employ some 23,000 people in more than 20 countries and are a member of theFTSE 100. Rexam's ordinary shares are listed with the UK Listing Authority andtrade on the London Stock Exchange under the symbol REX. Enquiries Rexam PLCDavid Robbie, Finance Director +44 20 7227 4100Sandra Moura, Head of Investor Relations Financial DynamicsRichard Mountain +44 20 7269 7186 Rexam will host a conference call for investors and analysts on Thursday 13December at 08:00 (UK time), for conference call details please call: Financial DynamicsElaine Ryman +44 20 7269 7121 This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
REX.L