The Hague--The world's top paint maker AkzoNobel said Thursday that negative currency effects cut into sales last year, while exceptional items ate into net profits.
The Dutch-Swedish group's revenue dropped by 2.0 percent to 14.296 billion euros ($16.2 billion) last year despite a 1 percent gain in sales in volume terms due to the adverse currency changes.
Net profit fell to 546 million euros, but excluding exceptional items, operating profit rose by 20 percent to 1.07 billion euros.
AkzoNobel chief executive Ton Buechner said "2014 was challenging, evidenced by negative currency effects, a continued lack of growth in Europe and in some of the Latin American and Asian economies."
The group however said it "remained on track to achieve its targets for 2015" thanks to efforts made in previous years to increase operating efficiency.
Paint is used throughout industry, as well as for housing, and so is regarded as a broad barometer of underlying economic activity.
Formed in 1994 in a merger between Akzo and Nobel, the group employs 50,000 people worldwide and counts Dulux and Trimetal among its brands.
AFP
