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ADM reaps rewards of higher ethanol margins
04.08.2010 11:56 "Agro Perspectiva" (Kyiv) —
Archer Daniels Midland, the US-based agricultural trading house, said on Tuesday its profits had risen almost 15 per cent in the fiscal year 2010 compared with the same period of 2009 on the back of rising demand for ethanol and soyabeans.
The agribusiness said it had earned $1.93bn in the year to June 30, up from $1.68bn the previous year, when profits were hit by the global economic crisis.
The jump in profits comes as agricultural commodities prices from wheat to cocoa rise strongly on the back of poor crops and a revival in demand, with consumption of food commodities emerging unscathed from the global financial crisis.
«The ADM team finished strong, capping a very good year with very good fourth-quarter performance,» said Patricia Woertz, chief executive. «As we begin our new fiscal year, our large projects are nearly finished, and we commit to use our strong balance sheet and cash flow to deliver shareholder value,» she added.
Shares of ADM were up 1.6 per cent in light pre-market trading.
The company, whose main competitors in the US are Cargill and Bunge, said its earnings had jumped in the fourth quarter to $446m or 69 cents per share up from just $58m or 9 cents per share in the same period of fiscal 2009. The fourth-quarter earnings were above Wall Street’s forecast of 53 cents per share.
The increase in ADM’s profitability contrasts with Bunge’s disappointing start to the year, which forced the trader to cut its earning forecast for 2010.
ADM said its strong performance in the year to June 30 had been helped by better ethanol margins on its biofuels division. The trading house has invested heavily on corn-based biofuels, a sector which last year struggled because of low demand for gasoline and low oil prices, which made ethanol unattractive.
ADM also benefited from «strong export demand» for commodities such as soyabeans and corn on the back of rising consumption in emerging countries, including China. ADM said it was running its corn processing plants «strong» to meet demand.
Net sales on the 2010 fiscal year fell to $61.7bn, down from $69.2bn in the same period last year. However, net sales are a poor indicator of a commodities trader’s performance as they move up and down with the price of raw materials.
ADM, based in Decatur, Illinois, is one of the world’s top-three agricultural traders and processors, employing 29,000 people in more than 60 countries.
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