Umicore off to a very strong start in 2021 and maintaining strategic course of action

As communicated on 22 April, Umicore is off to a very strong start this year, as it benefits from soaring precious metal prices, strong demand across businesses, and robust operations.

In Catalysis, Umicore substantially outperformed the global car market in the first quarter, both in volumes and revenues driven by further market share gains, particularly in the Chinese and European light-duty gasoline markets, a favorable platform mix and the continued shift away from diesel within the engine mix in Europe. Revenues and volumes in heavy-duty diesel applications also continued to outgrow the market on the back of strong demand for Umicore’s China V catalyst technologies. Growth in the business units Precious Metals Chemistry and Fuel Cell & Stationary Catalysts, higher PGM prices and the impact of footprint optimization and cost improvements carried out in 2020, further contributed to the strong performance in the first quarter.

In Energy & Surface Technologies, Umicore’s sales volumes of cathode materials showed strong growth, supported primarily by strong demand in Europe, which benefited Umicore’s sales mix. In China, where the EV market is showing first signs of recovery, Umicore’s volumes started to pick up. However, there continues to be overcapacity in the cathode materials industry in China which results, as expected, in pricing pressure. Demand in Cobalt & Specialty Materials also increased, benefiting from the recovery of the economy while Metal Deposition Solutions saw very strong demand from the electronics industry.

In Recycling, first quarter performance was significantly ahead of last year, boosted by soaring precious metal prices, in particular rhodium, as well as volume growth and robust operations across business units and regions. Precious Metals Refining continued to take advantage of its enhanced capacity and capability to treat highly complex PGM-containing materials. The performance in Jewelry & Industrial Metals was also very strong due to sustained high demand for investment products and gold recycling services while high precious metal price levels and volatility led to an outstanding earnings contribution from Precious Metals Management.