3M profit beats on higher demand for personal safety, home care products

3M Co, which makes N95 face masks, reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit on Tuesday, helped by lower costs and higher demand for its personal safety products and home care items such as Scotch-Brite during the Covid-19 pandemic.
 

3M has seen robust demand for disposable respirator masks, hand sanitizers and safety glasses amid a surge in coronavirus infections. Its home improvement products ScotchBlue painter tapes and Filtrete room air purifiers also gained traction, as people stayed home during the health crisis.
 

The company has exposure to a wide range of end markets including aerospace and oil and gas, where demand plunged,