Growing global demand for cans boosts Ball results

The Canmake: "Growing worldwide demand for cans boosted Ball Corporation’s financial results in the first half 2010.

Both sales and profit in the period increased 12.5 percent year-on-year to US$3.6 billion and $227 million respectively.

The canmaking company's president and chief operating officer John Hayes said: “Executing on our strategic initiatives has enabled us to refine our company's product portfolio, improve operating performance and meet the growing worldwide demand for metal packaging by our customers.”

The addition of four US can- and end-making plants bought from Anheuser-Busch Inbev last year, increased retail promotion of carbonated soft drinks and strong demand for specialty can sizes drove volume improvement, the company said.

Profits in the Americas and Asia beverage can business in the first six months of the year jumped 56 percent to $188.5m, on sales of $1.8bn, up 29 percent year-on-year.

“Double-digit volume growth continues in China and Brazil, and as overall metal packaging trends improve we continue to monitor global opportunities for disciplined growth,” Hayes said."