D&L Industries Inc. said Wednesday third-quarter net income declined 11 percent to P493 million, still weighed down by the higher cost base resulting from the commissioning of new facilities at its Batangas plant. Sales in the quarter was up 24 percent to P10.51 billion.
In the nine months through September, the company saw net income down 1 percent to P1.81 billion even as sales soared 19 percent to P29.48 billion.
D&L develops and manufactures food ingredients, colorants, additives, engineered polymers, aerosol products, oleochemicals, resins and powder coating. It also manufactures a range of related products, including insect control, industrial maintenance chemicals, and home and personal care products, among others.
The new Batangas facility, though contributing to higher costs, has been a bright spot for the company.
“What we are seeing now is the natural cycle of operating a new plant,” said Alvin Lao, D&L president and chief executive officer. “As we further ramp up operations, costs will rise, but we expect this to be offset by new business coming in,” he added.
A robust export market made for a slack in the domestic market, where sales rose 12 percent year-on-year and gross profit inched up 5 percent. Export sales surged by 38 percent year-on-year, while export gross profits increased by 24 percent.
“The export market continues to outperform domestic performance,” Lao explained. “We believe we are still barely scratching the surface. With continued growth in exports, we see our Batangas plant becoming a more strategic asset, enabling us to pursue international opportunities more aggressively.”
