Whirlpool profits fall by half due to Covid-19

US white goods manufacturer Whirlpool saw its earnings fall by about half on-year in the second quarter, largely due to Covid-19, Kallanish reports. 

Whirlpool generated net earnings available to the company of $35 million on sales of $4.04 billion in Q2, down from earnings of $67m on sales of $5.19 billion in Q2 2019. 

“Delivering a solid Q2 performance despite the far-reaching impact of Covid-19 on our business is the result of the decisive actions we took throughout the quarter and ultimately demonstrates the resilience of our business model,” says ceo Marc Bitzer. “While we recognise the uncertainty and volatility which lies ahead of us, we are proud of the way in which we managed through the most difficult quarter of this global crisis.”

Whirlpool now expects its overall 2020 sales to be down about -10-15%, lower than its previous estimate of -13-18%. This is partially due to a faster-than-anticipated recovery in demand in North America. 

The return of white goods manufacturing and other contract business was the stated reason for a recent $40/short ton flat-rolled increase announced earlier this week (see related story).