Currency headwinds and weakness in Europe hampered Croda's (CRDA) third quarter and management feared the final months of the year could be even worse. But they needn't have worried. North America came back in the fourth quarter, China improved and Europe held up. What's more, given that 2013 has so far matched expectations, earnings upgrades appear likely.
Double-digit volume growth easily compensated for lower pricing during the quarter and, despite taking the biggest currency hit of the year, mostly due to the weak euro, record margins delivered a 5 per cent increase in operating profit to £61.9m. There was little to separate the consumer care and smaller performance technologies divisions during the three months - both raised profits by more than 4 per cent - and it was a similar story over the full year. Each made an extra 8 per cent, off-setting weakness at the much smaller industrial chemicals operation.