Despite macroeconomic headwinds, listed chemicals and food ingredients manufacturer D&L Industries Inc. still saw its first-half earnings gain momentum as sales volumes improved.

In a stock exchange report on Tuesday, the company said net income in the first six months improved moderately by 6 percent to P1.32 billion, from P1.24 billion last year.

D&L president and CEO Alvin Lao attributed the profits gain to its multi-billion peso Batangas manufacturing plant, which turned profitable during the second quarter.

“The second quarter of this year marks the turning point in our Batangas operations as it booked a quarterly profit for the first time since we started commercial operations in July 2023.”

“As we further ramp up operations and onboard new customers, we see a gradually increasing earnings contribution from this new plant over time,” Lao said.

Volumes up 33%

For the High Margin Specialty Products (HMSP) segment alone, which is the key earnings driver of the company, volumes were up 33 percent during the first semester. It represented the fourth consecutive quarter in which this segment posted higher volume growth.

The Batangas plant’s expanded capacity, primarily focused on producing higher value-added products, has significantly contributed to the growth of the HMSP segment.

Export sales accelerated by 57 percent year-on-year for the first half of the year.

Meanwhile, export sales as a percentage of total sales stood at 33 percent in the first six months, which is already at par with the record-high export sales contribution reported in 2021.

According to Lao, the company’s free cash flows remained positive for the period at P2.4 billion, which already exceeded last year’s P1.1 billion.