Agrium Inc. Updates Second Half Outlook.Business Editors CALGARY, Alberta--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 2001 All amounts are stated in US dollars. Agrium Inc. (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange :AGU AGU Aoyama Gakuin University, Tokyo, Japan AGU American Geophysical Union AGU Arabian Gulf University (Bahrain) AGU All Grown Up (TV show) AGU Aguascalientes, Aguascalientes, Mexico )(TSE See Tokyo Stock Exchange. TSE 1. See Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). 2. See Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE). :AGU) ("Agrium") announced today that it expects lower third quarter earnings resulting largely from lower nitrogen prices, both domestically and internationally. The high inventory levels carried forward from the poor spring season and lower gas prices have had a negative effect on nitrogen prices in the third quarter. Third quarter results were also negatively impacted by shut-down costs and higher costs of product resulting from production cutbacks for inventory control reasons. As a result, the Company would expect to record a third quarter net loss in the range of $0.10 to $0.15 per share on a diluted basis. This would result in earnings on a diluted basis for the nine months ended September 30, 2001 of $0.26 to $0.31 per share. Results for the fourth quarter continue to be difficult to forecast. The Company expects that tightening supply / demand will positively affect nitrogen prices and margins in the next six months, although the impact to the fourth quarter of 2001 is not yet clear. If the current low nitrogen prices continue, then the Company would not expect the fourth quarter to contribute positively to earnings. However, nitrogen prices should improve due to tightening supplies and stronger expected demand, the latter due to an anticipated improvement in grain prices, a shift back to corn and wheat acreage and a return to normal weather conditions. In addition, the global nitrogen supply situation continues to tighten and North American North American named after North America. North American blastomycosis see North American blastomycosis. North American cattle tick see boophilusannulatus. inventories are currently close to average levels. Agrium Inc. is a leading global producer and marketer of fertilizer and a major retail supplier of agricultural products and services in both North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. and Argentina. The Corporation produces and markets four primary groups of fertilizers: nitrogen, phosphate, potash potash: see potassium carbonate. potash Name used for various inorganic compounds of potassium, chiefly the carbonate (K2CO3), a white crystalline material formerly obtained from wood ashes. and sulphur. The Corporation's strategy is to grow through incremental Additional or increased growth, bulk, quantity, number, or value; enlarged. Incremental cost is additional or increased cost of an item or service apart from its actual cost. expansion of its existing operations and acquisitions as well as the development, commercialization and marketing of new products and international opportunities. |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion