The Freudenberg Group in China achieves another record-breaking year in sales and headcount. The basis of the Group's success in China is its long-term strategy. Compared with the previous year, sales in China rose by around 33 percent or 1.3 billion to 5.412 billion Yuan (€ 663 million). 

 

The company also increased the number of jobs by 621 to 6,305 (previous year: 5,684). "The contribution made by the China region to the Freudenberg Group's overall success continues to expand. In some areas, growth in this region is significantly higher than in our other regions. 

 

In 2013, the share of the China region in Group sales increased by approximately 2 percent," Hanno D. Wentzler, Regional Representative Asia, announced at a press conference in Beijing. "Our products also make a valuable contribution to positive developments in China, for example in improving the CO2 balance across all sectors." 

 

Investment in business operations are an essential part of the growth strategy: Over the next two years a further 50 million Yuan (approx. €6 million) will be invested by the filtration technology Business Group alone. A new research and development center for specialty lubricants and release agents will be inaugurated in Qingpu a few weeks from now. Over the last ten years Freudenberg has invested some 2.3 billion Yuan (€240 million) in China.

 

In the 165th year of its history, Freudenberg was more successful than ever before. In the 2013 financial year, the international technology group reported record sales for the fourth year in succession, on the previous consolidation basis totaling approximately 54 billion Yuan (€6,622.5 million, 2012: €6,321.7 million). This represents an increase of roughly 2.4 billion Yuan (€300.8 million), or 4.8 percent. 

 

Adjusted for the effects of acquisitions and disinvestments to the amount of 1.2 billion Yuan (€148.1 million) and exchange rate effects, sales were 5.4 percent or 2.7 billion Yuan (€338.9 million) higher than the previous year. Consolidated profit ran at some 3.3 billion Yuan (€401.5 million) based on a significant improvement in business operations compared with the figure for the previous year 3.5 billion Yuan (€432.7 million), which included one-off extraordinary items. As at December 31, 2013, the Freudenberg Group employed 39,897 people (previous year: 37,453).

 

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