SHOUGUANG, China, April 15, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gulf Resources, Inc. (Nasdaq:GURE) ("Gulf Resources" or the "Company" or "GURE"), a leading manufacturer of bromine, crude salt and specialty chemical products in China, today discussed the likelihood of an increasing bromine price trend in China.
The United States, Israel, and China are the three largest producers of bromine. The two of largest companies in the industry are Albemarle Corporation and Israel Chemical. In recent months, both Albemarle and ICL have announced substantial price increases for bromine.
On March 26, 2015, Albemarle Corporation, announced that it will increase global prices for elemental bromine and bromine derivatives by 30%. 1 On November 4, 2014, ICL Industrial Products, a segment of ICL, announced that it has increased its prices for elemental bromine and hydrobromic acid that it sells in the Far East by 20%. 2
Gulf Resources is one of the largest bromine producers in China. Bromine has been Gulf's largest business segment. At the 2014, it accounted for 51% of sales and 61% of assets.
The Company's CEO Xiaobin Liu Stated, "The significant price increases by the two largest companies in the bromine industry will have a positive effect on the Chinese domestic bromine market. It is difficult to predict when these price increases will be fully reflected in China. However, we believe when customers work through their current inventories, we will see significant increases in prices."
"At the same time," Mr. Liu continued, "The Chinese government is putting more policy incentives toward stimulating the economy. This could further increase demand. We believe we are on the right path to significantly increase shareholder value."
About Gulf Resources, Inc.
Gulf Resources, Inc. operates through two wholly-owned subsidiaries, Shouguang City HaoyuanChemical Company Limited ("SCHC") and Shouguang Yuxin Chemical Industry Co., Limited ("SYCI"). The company believes that it is one of the largest producers of bromine in China. Elemental Bromine is used to manufacture a wide variety of compounds utilized in industry and agriculture. Through SYCI, the company manufactures chemical products utilized in a variety of applications, including oil and gas field explorations and papermaking chemical agents. For more information, visit www.gulfresourcesinc.com.
1 Source: http://investors.albemarle.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=117031&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=2029057
2 Source: http://www.icl-group.com/newsevents-pressreleases/Article/af24751c-d3a0-42dc-a345-edaf8f892c30.aspx
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this news release contain forward-looking information about Gulf Resources and its subsidiaries business and products within the meaning of Rule 175 under the Securities Act of 1933 and Rule 3b-6 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and are subject to the safe harbor created by those rules. The actual results may differ materially depending on a number of risk factors including, but not limited to, the general economic and business conditions in the PRC, future product development and production capabilities, shipments to end customers, market acceptance of new and existing products, additional competition from existing and new competitors for bromine and other oilfield and power production chemicals, changes in technology, the ability to make future bromine asset purchases, and various other factors beyond its control. All forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this Cautionary Statement and the risks factors detailed in the company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gulf Resources undertakes no duty to revise or update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.
CONTACT: Gulf Resources, Inc.
Web: http://www.gulfresourcesinc.com
Director of Investor Relations
Helen Xu
beishengrong@vip.163.com
IR Manager
Max Ma
Max_vx@163.com
