(Reuters) – Albemarle Corp reported a 12% drop in quarterly profit on Wednesday as weakness in a division that supplies crude oil refineries offset a surge in sales of lithium, a key metal used to make electric vehicle batteries.
The company posted first-quarter net income of $95.7 million, or 84 cents per share, compared to $107.2 million, or $1.01 per share, in the year-ago period.
(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by Chris Reese)
