Germany's Lanxess gets boost from stockpiling ahead of Trump tariff threat

By Rafal Wojciech Nowak

(Reuters) -German speciality chemicals maker Lanxess on Thursday said U.S. customers had rushed to stockpile its products, joining consumers and companies hoping to get ahead of potential trade tariffs threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has since his inauguration imposed a variety of blanket tariffs on several countries and goods, and threatened further levies going forward.

Lanxess ships goods into the United States for firms including Germany's Bayer and fragrance makers Givaudan and Symrise, according to U.S. import filings reviewed by Reuters.

"Normally, the month of December was the weakest throughout the quarter, but the development was a different one in 2024," CEO Matthias Zachert said at a press conference. "There was an increase in December in comparison to November and October."

Zachert warned that while the surge boosted fourth-quarter earnings, it might be followed by reduced demand in the first quarter of 2025 because customers will have already met their immediate needs.

Lanxess, which on Thursday forecast 2025 core earnings below market expectations, said it had seen slightly lower prices in the fourth quarter mostly due to input cost deflation, but increased sales volumes for most business units as customers rushed to place orders.

In January, Lanxess had said it expected its fourth-quarter core profit to exceed market expectations by more than 20%, largely because of the stockpiling.

Tariffs tend to be inflationary because they raise the cost of imported goods, prompting businesses to either absorb the higher expenses or pass them on to consumers through price increases.

The fear of rising prices often fuels stockpiling behaviour, particularly of non-perishable goods like chemicals and medical supplies, as companies buy goods before costs escalate further.

(Reporting by Rafal Wojciech Nowak in Gdansk; editing by Richa Naidu)