Apr 9, 2024 - Business

Kimberly-Clark selling PPE unit to Australian facemask maker

Dan Primack

Illustration of an open briefcase filled a medical mask, gloves, and hand sanitizer — Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Kimberly-Clark, the Texas-based maker of Kleenex and Huggies, has agreed to sell its personal protective equipment business to Australia's Ansell for $640 million in cash.

Why it matters: It wasn't too long ago that America was wringing its ungloved hands over how much PPE manufacturing had moved overseas.

This deal also comes on the heels of a report that Charlotte-based Honeywell is seeking to sell its PPE unit.

Go deeper, per the WSJ: "Domestic mask producers ... have been left with plants sitting idle, unfinished or operating below capacity. The industry has also grappled with slack demand in recent years as laboratories, hospitals and clinics built up large stocks of gloves and other PPE equipment during the pandemic that they took time to run down."

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Kimberly-Clark selling PPE unit to Australian facemask maker

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