Hanwha Chemical Corp., a major chemical firm in South Korea, said Wednesday it swung to the black in the third quarter due to robust earnings in its photovoltaics business.

Net profit for the July-September period stood at 111.5 billion won (US$ 95.4 million), turning from a loss of 34.7 billion won a year earlier, the company said in a regulatory filing.

Operating profit spiked 62.5 percent on-year to 152.5 billion won, while sales rose 5.6 percent on-year to 2.44 trillion won in the third quarter.

The operating profit was 34.8 percent higher than the average estimate, according to the survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data firm of Yonhap News Agency.

Hanwha Chemical said solid performance in the photovoltaics sector, led by Hanwha Q Cells, which makes solar cells and modules, lifted its third-quarter bottom line.

The company posted 65.6 billion won of operating profit in its photovoltaics business in the third quarter, compared with a 300 million-won loss a year earlier, while its sales more than doubled to reach 1.6 trillion won.

The affiliate of Hanwha Group said decreased raw material costs and a weak Korean won also boosted its profitability in basic materials business.

Hanwha Chemical said prices of its main products are likely to stay weak during the fourth quarter, but could rebound if U.S.-China trade tensions ease.

Shares in Hanwha Chemical surged 7.85 percent to 18,550 won on the Seoul bourse, far outperforming broader KOSPI's 0.86 percent decline. Its earnings results were released before the market closed. (Yonhap)

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