Praxair Inc. (NYSE: PX), Danbury, CT, reported sales for the second quarter of $2.7 billion, a 12 percent decrease year-over-year. Profit decreased 34 percent to $308 million.
In North America, second-quarter sales were $1.5 billion, down 1 percent from the prior-year quarter. In Europe, second-quarter sales were $331 million, 19 percent below the prior-year quarter.
In South America, second-quarter sales decreased 24 percent year-over-year to $388 million. Sales in Asia were $387 million in the quarter, 2 percent above the prior year. Praxair Surface Technologies had second-quarter sales of $150 million, a decrease of 13.8 percent compared to the prior-year quarter.
“The second quarter continued to reflect broad-based demand in chemicals, refining and less cyclical end-markets such as healthcare and food and beverage, but revealed further weakening in macro-economic driven demand in South America, China and certain end-markets in the U.S., such as manufacturing and energy," said CEO Steve Angel. "As such, we took actions to better align our organization with these trends.”
Year to date, the company reported sales of $5.5 billion, down 10.5 percent from the same period a year ago. Profit decreased 20.9 percent to $724 million.
