Sales revenue after consolidation costs totaled €876 million, down just under 3% from €902 million the year prior.

Across the company’s regional segments, sales revenues in Europe, the Middle East and Africa dropped from €524 million to €499 million, a slide of almost 5%. In the Asia-Pacific region, sales dipped to €247 million, down just under 2% from €252 million. In North and South America, sales lowered 6%, from €182 million to €171 million.

The drops come after the company reported growth in all three segments in the third quarter of 2022 – 23% for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, 18% in Asia-Pacific and 52% for North and South America.

In its earnings release, the company noted sluggish economic growth even disregarding impacts of fighting in Ukraine and the Middle East.

“It is difficult to judge from today’s perspective which impact this will have on economic development in general and raw material and sales prices in particular,” Stefan Fuchs, chairman of the executive board of Fuchs, said in the earnings release. “In addition, there is a strike in the automotive industry in the U.S.”

On a nine-month basis, reported in the company’s release, sales revenues are up in every region. In Europe, the Middle East and Africa, organic growth has come mainly as a result of price adjustments, along with growth in Great Britain, Poland, France and Italy.

There was also strong organic growth in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in Australia and Southeast Asia, though Fuchs noted Asian currencies continue to weaken.

In North America, significant price increases drove strong organic growth, though the aforementioned auto industry strike started to affect the business at the end of the third quarter. South America also reported strong price-driven growth.