Faurecia positive on full year despite slide in H1 profits, plans to close eight seat manufacturing plants

The global number of sites manufacturing seats will fall from 22 to 14 over 4 years.

Faurecia has announced that its profits tumbled during the first half of 2013 despite an improvement in sales. For the six months ending 30 June, the component supplier's sales revenues rose by 5.7% year-on-year (y/y) to EUR9,265 million (USD12,245 million), helped by an increase in product sales of 5.7% y/y to EUR7,138 million. However, operating income fell 15.7% y/y to EUR256.2 million, as a result of the decline in European automotive production. Net income also slumped from EUR120.8 million to EUR35.3 million, as its net financing costs were EUR97.1 million and restructuring costs amounted to EUR39.2 million. The company added that it was at breakeven on net cash flow, driven by a significant improvement in its working capital requirements, while net debt had been reduced to EUR1,708 million compared to EUR1,807 million at the end of 2012.