Crisis hits hard chemical industry The chemical industry has been hit hard by the crisis, a Pari daily's analyses of listed companies' 2009 reports shows. The only company in the sector that avoided a slump is Vidin-based tyre manufacturer Vidachim. Its sales last year amounted to BGN 57.75 million, up 16.1% on 2008. The new products launched by the company had a positive effect on sales, the report reads. The sales of Gabrovo-based PVC pipe producer Kapitan Dyado Nikola plummeted 64.2% to BGN 10.6 million. The global economic downturn affected demand for the company's products. In absolute terms, Neochim was leader in net sales. However, the company reported a year-on-year drop of 62.3%. That was mainly due to the poor condition of the agricultural sector and its financing problems, the fertiliser maker said. The sales of Kauchuk and Polimeri fell 43.1 and 58.7% to BGN 13.3 million and BGN 19.3 million, respectively. Orgachim booked the smallest drop. The income of the paint producer declined 18.65% to BGN 106.4 million. Despite their poor performance, companies in the sectors enjoy investors' trust. Astra Investments' Severin Vartigov pointed to the fact that drop slowed down in the last two quarters. According to Real Finance Asset Management's Daniel Dimitrov, the companies will swing to growth by this year's end. The lower sales affected companies' profits and most of them booked losses for 2009. The sector's total net result was minus BGN 30.4 million. Neochim fared worst of all with a loss of BGN 19.4 million. Polimeri's earnings fell the most: 2,037% to BGN 8.8 million. Only Kauchuk was in the black, though its profit fell 18.6% to BGN 285,000.
Source: Pari (16.03.2010)

Another two Bulgarian firms shipping the bulk of their produce abroad gave out signals they might be getting the upper hand over the market upheaval. Fertiliser maker Neochim and vet products maker Biovet expect to scale up sales by 50% and 10%, respectively, in 2010. Biovet was in positive territory also in 2009, whereas Neochim saw sales slide thanks to dampened demand and pressure from the January 2009 gas crisis. The low base enables the company to make forecasts about stronger growth this year. Recovering foreign demand and market expansion are expected to shore up both Biovet and Neochim for 2010.
Source: Dnevnik (26.04.2010)

Analysts’ forecasts that Bulgarian exporters will emerge from the market meltdown are coming true as show the latest batch of earnings reports filed with the Bulgarian Stock Exchange (BSE). Car battery maker Monbat, Stara Planina Hold and cigarette maker Sofia BT notched up hefty gains for the first quarter and expect to keep up the momentum through the months ahead. Upswing has already been seen at copper and lead smelter OZK, vet products maker Biovet, fertiliser maker Neochim and pharmaceuticals company Sopharma. Monbat even pulled off triple-digit increase on an annual basis, getting back to levels recorded before it was ravaged by the downturn in the second half of 2008. The firm netted non-consolidated sales of BGN 16.5 million for March, up 159% from the same month of last year. Pre-tax profit bulged by 134% year-on-year to BGN 1.78 million. Stara Planina Hold, one of Bulgaria’s major listed group with machine-building exporters in its portfolio, surpassed its own expectations, enjoying a 40% rise in consolidated sales in March and 3% for the quarter at BGN 14.3 million. The group predicts sales will surge by more than 39.5% between January and April compared with the same period of last year. Sofia BT improved sales and curbed its loss for the first quarter, with sales up 80% to slightly over BGN 20 million. The company attributed the surge on a shift to foreign markets.
Source: Dnevnik (27.04.2010)

Two more Bulgarian companies defied the downturn and managed to bottom out after the devastating 2009. Fertiliser maker Neochim and FairPlay Properties posted stronger sales for the first quarter of 2010, highlighting analysts’ expectations that exporters will put in a nice performance. FairPlay’s sales are mostly driven by Russian customers, which means it can be considered an exporter. The company notched up a 40% increase in third-quarter sales to BGN 5.6 million on an 11% reduction in the selling prices of flats in its benchmark Santa Marina holiday project in Sozopol, on the Southern Black Sea coast. The move also caused a fivefold slump in profit. By contrast, Neochim swung to a profit and pulled off a double increase in sales between January and March.
Source: Dnevnik (28.04.2010)

Neochim JSC - Dimitrovgrad has appointed Annual general meeting on 11.06.2010. Meeting agenda includes: adoption of the Annual Report for Year 2009.
Source: Registry Agency (29.04.2010)

The General Meeting of the shareholders of Neochim, Bourse code 3NB, which was held on June 11 2010, adopted the annual financial report for 2009. The company reported a loss to the amount of BGN 17 849 000.
Source: Capital market (16.06.2010)

Fertilisers maker Neochim reported double growth in sold produce and increased production in the first half of the year, according to the firm’s consolidated report. Total revenue surged 62% to BGN 90.9 million. Revenue from the sale of goods and services took a beating but it was fully offset by revenue from produce, which surpassed BGN 88 million. Currency gains more than doubled. Neochim narrowed its first-half loss to BGN 3.17 million from almost BGN 8 million in the year-ago period. Material costs more than doubled to BGN 66.2 million.
Source: Dnevnik (27.08.2010)

Bulgarian fertilisers maker Neochim is already running at full capacity after nearly terminating production last year, as a result of the gas crisis and the weaker demand for its products by farmers, who were hit by the economy slowdown, the company said Wednesday. Neochim was forced to start operating at minimum capacity in January 2009, asking part of its employees to use unpaid leave. Later in September, the manufacturer said it would relaunch production at full capacity, but several months later the frailer demand again made the company limit its operations. The company was even expected to resort to staff reduction in the spring of 2010. According to the company's financial report for the first nine months of the year, its sales marked an increase for July to September. Neochim, however, did not provide a full-year forecast, saying its performance is contingent on various factors, such as the economic turmoil, climate changes and subsidies paid to farmers. The company's revenue from core operations stood at BGN 100.4 million as at end-September, up 65% on the year, with its operating loss falling by half to BGN 7.5 million. Unlike last September, however, Neochim ended the nine-month period with a loss of BGN 8 million against a positive result of BGN 16.8 million a year ago.
Source: Dnevnik (04.11.2010)