With 2004 sales of EUR 1.18 bn, up from the EUR 1.17 bn reported for 2003, the remaining core businesses of SIG Holding (CH-8212 Neuhausen; www.sig.biz) managed once again to make slight progress. As in the past, aseptic beverage carton manufacturer SIG Combibloc (D-52441 Linnich; www.combibloc.com), accounted for the lion´s share. Europe´s number two in the beverage carton business posted sales of EUR 1.08 bn (1.06 bn), while EBIT dropped to EUR 111m (EUR 137m). This reflects in particular the tense cost situation for the polyethylene used for the inner coatings and liners. Measures already introduced to improve the operating margin should start to take hold in 2005, the parent company said.

The picture looks somewhat different for the machinery manufacturing division of SIG Beverages (www.sigbeverages.com). As planned, it sold the Italian companies Simonazzi (filling technology) and Alfa (labelling technology) at the beginning of February to its leading competitor, Tetra Laval (www.tetralaval.com). The remaining units of the plastic bottles segment posted sales of EUR 133m (EUR 135m). EBITA was slightly positive again at EUR 3m, but the EBIT loss grew to EUR 94m from EUR 12m. The figure is affected above all by the amortisation of goodwill on the divested companies.

The Beverages division of the group, which was pieced together ambitiously through acquisitions in 2000/2001, now centres essentially on the traditional company SIG Corpoplast (D-22145 Hamburg www.sigcorpoplast.com) and its immediate environment. This pioneer of stretch blow-moulding technology recently celebrated the 30th birthday of PET bottle blowing.