DIC Reports Consolidated 1Q 2026 Financial Results

DIC Corporation reported its consolidated financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2026. In the three months ended March 31, 2026, DIC Corporation’s consolidated net sales increased 27.8%, to ¥282.5 billion ($1.78 billion). Operating income rose 87.7%, to ¥24.5 billion ($150 million).

“In the three months ended March 31, 2026, consolidated net sales rose 7.8%, to ¥282.5 billion,” DIC reported. “Key global economies continue to be impacted by logistics and supply chain disruptions arising from the escalating tensions in the Middle East, which have led to soaring crude oil prices and energy costs, as well as to concerns regarding supplies of naphtha-derived petrochemicals.

“Owing to multiple factors, including the impact of this situation on consumer prices, an uncertain outlook persists for both corporate entities and consumers. Results for inks for packaging applications and for certain resins reflected a trend among customers, particularly in overseas markets, to boost inventories amid apprehension about the prolonged Middle East crisis.”

“Operating income climbed 87.7%, to ¥24.5 billion,” DIC added. “This was due mainly to rising shipments of high-value-added products, particularly for digital applications, as well as to relentless efforts to revise sales prices and implement appropriate cost management in all three segments.”

Packaging & Graphic segment sales increased 8.4%, to ¥145.2 billion ($910 million). Segment operating income was up 25% to ¥8.3 billion ($52 million).

“Segment sales increased 8.4%, to ¥145.2 billion,” DIC noted. “In the area of packaging inks, used chiefly on packaging for food products, sales were down in Japan, as rising consumer prices led to a decrease in consumption, which pushed down shipments. In contrast, sales of these products rose in the Americas and Europe, despite flagging shipments attributable to waning economic conditions, thanks to efforts to adjust sales prices.

“Sales of packaging inks were also up in Asia and elsewhere, despite temporary inventory buildup by customers— particularly in the People’s Republic of China (PRC)—in anticipation of tensions in the Middle East, supported by moves to expand sales in individual regional markets,” DIC reported. “In publication inks, which center on inks for commercial printing and news inks, sales advanced, notwithstanding ongoing structural declines in publishing-related demand worldwide, bolstered by, among others, expanded shipments of UV-curable inks for printing trading cards and other applications and by the acquisition of market share from competitors in Europe.

“Sales of jet inks, used in digital printing, rose, despite one-time customer inventory adjustments, as shipments remained robust,” the company reported. “Shipments of polystyrene, applications for which include food trays, were up, as the situation in the Middle East encouraged customers to stockpile inventories. Segment operating income rose 25.0%, to ¥8.3 billion. Amid inventory buildup by customers attributable to the situation in the Middle East, steps taken to expand sales of high-value-added products and implement appropriate sales price revisions prompted gains in all geographic operating regions.”

Color & Display segment sales increased 1.5%, to ¥69.7 billion ($440 million). The segment reported a more than 300% operating gain of ¥8.5 billion ($54 million).

“Segment sales edged up 1.5%, to ¥69.7 billion,” said DIC. “On a local currency basis, however, sales declined 5.1%. Shipments of pigments for coatings and for plastics—which together account for a significant share of sales—diverged, with those of pigments for coatings falling, as a cold snap in North America dampened orders, while those for plastics rose, bolstered by expanded sales, particularly to customers in Europe and North America.

“Segment operating income soared 3.0 times, to ¥8.5 billion,” the company noted. “This was despite the decline in segment sales on a local currency basis and reflected such factors as a one-time gain stemming from the fact there was no longer a need to record a liability for repairs at a pigments production facility in Germany, which had been legally required in previous years, resulting in a ¥5.8 billion reversal of the liability.”