Finance
Holcim profit edges higher despite currency drag
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 24, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on October 24, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Holcim's Q3 profit rose due to a focus on high-value, sustainable products, despite currency challenges from the Swiss franc.
By John Revill
ZURICH (Reuters) -Holcim on Friday reported a small increase in third-quarter profit, as the building materials company's switch to more profitable products helped offset currency headwinds.
Holcim has been trying to boost profitability by selling more low-carbon cement and concrete, increasing its focus on more complex products like roofing and flooring, and recycling demolition waste to make new raw materials.
This helped lift Holcim's profit margin to 20.7% in the three months to the end of September, cushioning the impact of the appreciation of the Swiss franc, Holcim's reporting currency.
MARGIN EXPANSION DRIVEN BY FOCUS ON HIGHER-VALUE PRODUCTS
"Margin expansion was driven by our high-value strategy, scaling up our sustainable offering to meet customer demand, and accelerating decarbonization and circular construction for profitable growth," said CEO Milan Gutovic in a statement.
The company's shares were indicated up 2% in premarket activity in Zurich.
During the third quarter Holcim's recurring operating profit rose by 8.1% in local currencies, although this was reduced to 0.1% when reported in Swiss francs.
The figure of 836 million Swiss francs ($1.05 billion) was slightly ahead of analysts' forecasts for 816 million francs.
REPORTED FIGURES HIT BY APPRECIATION OF THE SWISS FRANC
Local currency sales rose by 4.9% to 4.04 billion francs during the quarter, but this translated into a 2.5% decline when converted into francs.
Holcim confirmed its full-year guidance, saying it still expected to increase its local currency sales by 3-5% and its recurring operating profit by 6-10%.
($1 = 0.7931 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by John Revill, Editing by Miranda Murray and Jan Harvey)
Profit margin is a financial metric that shows the percentage of revenue that exceeds the costs of goods sold. It indicates how efficiently a company is managing its expenses relative to its total revenue.
Recurring operating profit refers to the profit generated from a company's normal business operations, excluding any one-time or non-recurring items. It provides a clearer view of ongoing profitability.
Low-carbon cement is a type of cement that produces fewer carbon emissions during its manufacturing process compared to traditional cement. It is part of efforts to reduce the environmental impact of construction.
Currency headwind refers to the negative impact that currency fluctuations can have on a company's financial performance, particularly when revenues are reported in a different currency than expenses.
Decarbonization is the process of reducing carbon dioxide emissions associated with energy production and consumption. It is a key strategy in combating climate change and promoting sustainability.
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