US: Owens Corning's consolidated net sales for the first quarter of 2015 have fallen to US$1.21bn year-on-year from US$1.28bn in the same period in 2014. Adjusted earnings fell by US$13 to US$22m for the same period. The results was attributed to a weak roofing business.
"Owens Corning had a good start to 2015. Insulation continues to benefit from growth in US housing starts. Results in Composites reflect strong execution and operational performance. In Roofing, first quarter revenues and margins were weak. However, the Roofing business did not experience the discounting and inventory build in the channel that we saw in the same quarter last year, positioning the business to deliver higher volumes for the remainder of the year," said chairman and chief executive officer Mike Thaman.
To support growth in the North American mineral wool insulation business, the company's board of directors has approved a US$90m investment in a new mineral wool plant, to be operational in late 2016.
For its outlook the US based insulation, roofing and composites manufacturer said that it continues to expect to benefit in 2015 from sustained improvement in the US housing market and moderate global growth. Insulation should continue to benefit from growth in US residential new construction, improved pricing and operating leverage. Composites and roofing businesses are also expected to improve or remain stable respectively.
