(Reuters) -Construction chemicals maker Sika AG on Tuesday reported a 17.3% rise in 2021 sales, boosted by a raft of acquisitions and the upturn in the building industry after pandemic closures the year before.
The Swiss company, whose products are used to reinforce and water-proof concrete, said full-year sales rose to 9.24 billion francs ($9.98 billion) from 7.88 billion francs in 2020.
The annual sales figure was the highest in the company’s history, beating the previous high of 8.11 billion francs in 2019.
Sika, whose products have been used in the new metro line in Ecuador, said full-year sales in local currencies rose 17.1% beating the company’s forecasts for a 13% to 17% increase.
The company is due to report earnings on Feb. 18.
Sika, which made seven acquisitions last year, is aiming to increase its share of the construction chemicals market from around 10% now to 12% by 2025.
The company expects the market to increase to around 80 billion francs per year by 2023 from 70 billion francs currently, with government stimulus programmes and trends towards more sustainable building fuelling a global infrastructure boom.
($1 = 0.9262 Swiss francs)
(Reporting by John Revill in Zurich and Akanksha Khushi in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)