STOCKS NEWS EUROPE-Synthomer hit as Q3 shows Europe still a drag

Shares in Synthomer (Frankfurt: 7YC.F - news) fall 5 percent after the British chemical maker says trading conditions in Europe remain challenging, particularly in construction related areas.

The company, which supplies speciality emulsion polymers to the coatings, construction, textiles, paper and latex gloves markets, says it expects profitability in its Europe and North America business (ENA) in the second half to be slightly below that of last year.

However, the company says trading in Asia and its Rest of the World business remains strong, helped by demand for nitrile products.

"We view today's Q3 IMS as broadly cautious with the European trading environment continuing to impact demand and profitability," JPMorgan Cazenove analyst Ben Scarlett says in a note.

"Overall, with the shares up 16 percent over the past 3 months, investors may be disappointed the European recovery has had little impact on earnings at this stage," Scarlett adds.

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Reuters messaging rm://karen.rebelo.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net