German lubricant and additive producer LIQUI MOLY cited the Ukraine conflict, pandemic shutdowns in China and sharply increasing raw materials prices as major reasons for the company not meeting its revenue targets.
Despite this, Günter Hiermaier, who has been the motor oil manufacturer’s sole managing director since February, when Ernst Prost retired, is satisfied with the company’s results, which include an 8 percent increase in sales.
“I would have preferred an easier start to my new role. We hadn’t overcome the effects of the pandemic – supply chain disruptions, rising raw material prices and freight costs – before the next disaster, the war in Ukraine, caught us by surprise,” Hiermaier said in a statement. “The decision to discontinue our Russian business has hit us hard economically. But it was the right one.”
The company reported an 8 percent increase in sales to €382 million for the first half of 2022. “I’m satisfied with it, but not happy,” Hiermaier said. “We are struggling with extreme costs. Raw material prices are rising to unprecedented levels, which we unfortunately also have to pass on to our customers in some cases.”
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