Platinum refiner Johnson Matthey dropped 102p to £23.06 as third quarter profits fell 19% to £84.3m, hit by lower sales of catalytic converters for car exhaust systems in Europe and weak demand in Japan.
Sales of South African cars and components, such as catalytic converters, have already surged in America in the past three years.Expansion is likely to continue for years.
They are also buying catalytic converters for cars and electronics for aircraft.Measuring the value of all this will be tricky.
Narrow wires cast smaller shadows, so more sunlight reaches the cell.Solar panels made this way are now in production, and Mr Elrod is already casting his eye over fuel cells, ultracapacitors (a novel way of storing electricity) and even catalytic converters as suitable candidates for manufacture by co-extrusion.
The greyish-white metal's recent price rise follows increased demand from car makers for use in catalytic converters, and a decline in deliveries from Russia, the principal supplier.The price of oil reached its highest level since the Gulf war in 1991, with West Texas Intermediate crude hitting just over $30 a barrel and benchmark Brent crude remaining near recent high levels.
Their products include glues, starches, food additives, fragrances, and the innards of catalytic converters on car exhausts.
They balked until, in the 1970s, they had to install catalytic converters in cars to check emissions, and found that lead fouled them up.
Since the early 1990s, though, catalytic converters (fitted to about 80% of cars currently on the road) have reduced carbon monoxide emissions enough to allow for reconsideration.
In Mexico city and Santiago, most cars with catalytic converters are exempted from the ban.Since 1994, Sao Paulo's city council has been trying to introduce regular emissions inspections for vehicles.
No matter whether they choose to spend money on buying expertise, governors of a converter academy will still need to learn a great deal, often in short time, so "you've got to want to take those responsibilities," says Richard Barnard, chair of governors at Robinswood Academy, Gloucester.
"If you're a single converter school, the governing body actually become directors of the company and trustees of the charitable trust.
