Shake-Up at Johnson Matthey: New Roles for Top Executives

Johnson Matthey, a big name in the chemical industry, has some big changes happening at the top. Richard Pike, who was the finance chief, is now the new Chief Operating Officer. This means he will be in charge of making sure the company runs smoothly every day. At the same time, Alastair Judge, who has been working inside the company for a while, will take over as the new finance chief starting January 1. These changes come at a time when Johnson Matthey is trying to focus more on its main businesses. They have been selling off parts of the company that are not as important. This includes their catalysts arm, which helps reduce emissions. By doing this, they hope to become more efficient and make more money. The company recently shared some good news about their profits. For the last six months, their adjusted operating profit went up by 34%. That is a lot of money! But even with this good news, their shares went down a little bit. This shows that investors are still a bit worried about the company's future. Johnson Matthey is also trying to spend less money on big projects. They want to be more careful with their investments. This is a smart move because it helps them save money and focus on what is really important. Some experts think that the company might make less money next year. This is because they are going through some big changes. But the company's leaders say they are focused on making more money for their shareholders. They believe these changes will help them do just that.