Tom Park, PaperlinX CEO, is less than happy with the result, saying, “This result is not reflective of the positive strategic moves and hard work of our employees around the world. The sharp rise in the Australian dollar has been the major contributor towards this disappointing result.
“Our Australian manufacturing business has been significantly impacted, both through the impact on export revenue and through the resultant downward pressure on domestic paper selling prices. Our paper merchanting businesses have performed well in the difficult trading conditions experienced internationally, and though earnings were down, excluding acquisitions, we have maintained or grown our market positions in all major merchanting regions.”
Park says that this result is an important one for the company, as it is the first since the acquisition of Buhrmann’s paper merchanting division in Europe, and is included in PaperlinX’s results for the first time.
“PaperlinX has followed a clear strategic development path since listing in 2000, and this latest acquisition positions PaperlinX as the world’s leading fine paper merchant. Our focus is now to maximise the long term returns that can be achieved from this platform for the benefit of our shareholders,” says Park.
“This is an exciting time to join the PaperlinX team. A lot of hard work has gone into building this unique business platform. Certainly current economic conditions and the currency are continuing to impact earnings, particularly on our Australian manufacturing business, but our underlying businesses are solid, our focus on productivity and our customer bases is clear, and the employees that I have met around the world are committed.
“We don’t underestimate the risks and challenges ahead of us over the next 12 months, nor do we expect short term reversal of these pressures, but there continues to be opportunities for solid returns from both our manufacturing and merchanting platforms over the longer term.”
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