Why did Clariant maintain its full-year 2026 outlook despite a 13.3% year-on-year decline in Catalysts sales?

Clariant maintained its full-year 2026 outlook because strong second-quarter sales growth in Care Chemicals — up 4.2% excluding portfolio pruning, driven by a 3.7% pricing increase — and growth in Adsorbents and Additives (5.3%) more than offset the Catalysts segment’s 13.3% sales decline in local currency, which was caused by Middle East conflict-related order delays and a 14.2% drop in catalyst volumes; additionally, group EBITDA before exceptional items rose 1.5% to CHF171.1 million, and the EBITDA margin improved by 80 basis points to 18.2%, reflecting Care Chemicals’ ability to counteract margin pressure in Catalysts.

What specific impact did the Middle East conflict have on Clariant’s Catalysts business in Q2 2026, and how is the company responding?

The Middle East conflict caused a 14.2% year-on-year decline in catalyst volumes in Q2 2026, with about two-thirds of that decline attributed to order delays from customers in the region; Clariant reported resumed operations at its sites in Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, Israel, and Saudi Arabia, and confirmed feedstock access is secured globally, while noting customers outside the region are ‘slowly resuming operations’ and expecting improvement in H2 — though volatility, force majeures, and shutdowns are expected to continue; to mitigate rising costs (raw materials +7.4%, energy +6.0%, logistics +8.1%), Clariant continues its value-based price management supported by its global production network.

Clariant maintains outlook as Care Chemicals sales offset Middle East catalyst headwinds

Jul 31, 2026

Clariant AG maintained full-year guidance as strong Care Chemicals sales offset Middle East-driven catalyst volume declines. Pricing actions mitigated rising raw material and energy costs while regional operations resumed.

chemweek

2026-07-31

Clariant maintains outlook as Care Chemicals sales offset Middle East catalyst headwinds

Clariant maintains outlook as Care Chemicals sales offset Middle East catalyst headwinds

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