Arkema Releases Its Second Quarter 2026 Financial Results

Arkema released its second quarter 2026 financial results.

Chairman and CEO, Thierry Le Hénaff, said: “Arkema delivered a solid second quarter in a challenging environment impacted by the crisis in the Middle East, rising raw material prices and widespread supply chain disruption. Arkema’s teams once again demonstrated agility and commitment. We were particularly pleased with the significant improvement in Adhesives and Coatings as well as the better dynamics in HPP. This demonstrates the strength of Arkema’s portfolio, including its positioning in key markets such as electric mobility, advanced electronics, datacenters and bio-based consumer goods.”

At €2,428 million (€2,395 million in Q2’25), Group sales were driven by organic growth of 3.2% year-on-year. This was supported by a 5.1% price effect, reflecting swift pricing adjustments implemented by the Group to offset the sharp raw material cost inflation, as well as tighter market conditions in upstream acrylics. 

In an overall demand environment remaining weak with no material change to previous quarters, volumes were down 1.8% compared to last year. Some attractive key markets, namely batteries, electronics and 3D printing continued to show good growth, with around 15% sales increase in the quarter compared to last year. 

Scope effect was slightly negative at 0.7%, corresponding to the restatement as a non-recurring item of some small plastic additives businesses in connection with their divestment completed on 1 July. Lastly, the currency effect was more moderate than in the first quarter at a negative 1.2%, mainly linked to the devaluation of the US dollar against the euro.

Sharp increase in raw material costs following the start of the conflict in the Middle East, leading to swift pricing adjustments to offset input cost inflation. Solid EBITDA, up 7.4% YoY, at €391 million (€364 million in Q2’25) including €10 million FX headwind, and EBITDA margin improving to 16.1% (15.2% in Q2’25). 

This was mostly driven by the performance of Adhesive Solutions benefiting from the growth of industrial applications and Coating Solutions recovering well from last year’s level. Advanced Materials was impacted by weaker Performance Additives while HPP gained momentum. Primary Materials was supported by the improvement of acrylic spreads, partially offset by the decline of old-generation refrigerants.