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PPG Reports Revenue Decline

Friday, October 16, 2009

PPG Industries has reported that its third quarter sales show a decline of $3.2 billion, or 24%, versus third quarter 2008. The figure includes a 5% decline resulting from a business divestiture in 2008. The company reported a net income of $159 million and an adjusted net income of $161 million.

Third quarter 2008 sales were $4.2 billion, with a reported net income of $177 million and an adjusted net income of $227 million.

“In the quarter, we continued to restore profitability and to deliver strong cash generation,” said Charles E. Bunch, PPG chairman and chief executive officer. “We benefited from our aggressive cost-reduction actions, as well as a modest improvement in demand versus the first half of 2009, stemming from a very gradual recovery in the global economy.”

Bunch also said that the company posted record earnings in the Asia/Pacific region due to stronger year-over-year performance in China. He stated that PPG repaid $700 million of debt in the third quarter and has about $900 million cash on hand.

The performance coatings segment sales decreased by $154 million, or 13%, in third quarter 2009 versus the prior year’s quarter. The decline was due to lower sales across all businesses and weaker foreign currency.

Architectural coatings—Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) segment sales fell by $73 million. Segment sales in the optical and specialty materials segment dropped by $33 million. The commodity chemicals segment saw a decrease in sales of $213 million, or 43%. Glass segment sales declined by $329 million, primarily due to the AG&S business divestiture.

The industrial coatings segment sales for the quarter decreased by $198 million, or 19%, due primarily to lower year-over-year volumes in the automotive coatings and industrial coatings businesses. However, demand in the third quarter improved over the first two quarters of 2009. Segment earnings for the quarter were $58 million, which is an increase of $10 million from third quarter 2008.

PPG Industries is headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, and is a global supplier of paints, coatings, optical products, specialty materials, chemicals, glass, and fiber glass.

For more information, visit www.ppg.com.