the acquisition is expected to improve our growth opportunities by enhancing our product portfolio and improving our position in important growth markets , including the u.s. , mexico , turkey , and eastern europe . we expect to achieve favorable synergies and cost reductions . disposition of the specialty plastics business during the third quarter of 2014 , we completed the sale of substantially all of the assets in our specialty plastics business to a. schulman , inc. for $ 91.0 million in cash . the sale resulted in a gain of $ 54.9 million and net cash proceeds of $ 88.3 million . cash 19 proceeds were used to pay down the 7.785 % senior notes , as discussed below . this disposition was part of our value creation strategy , as we turn our focus to our core functional coatings and color businesses . acquisition of turkey assets during the third quarter of 2014 , the company acquired certain commercial assets of a reseller of our porcelain enamel products in turkey for a cash purchase price of $ 6.7 million . our porcelain enamel sales to this entity in 2013 were approximately $ 6.0 million . this action was an initial step to strengthen sales in growing geographic markets , such as turkey . 7.875 % senior note tender offer as discussed in note 8 , we completed a tender offer for our senior notes resulting in the purchase of $ 143.0 million of notes , with the remaining outstanding notes of $ 107.0 million being redeemed during the third quarter of 2014. new credit facility as discussed in note 8 , on july 31 , 2014 , the company entered into a new credit facility ( the “ new credit facility ” ) with pnc bank , national association ( “ pnc ” ) , as the administrative agent , the collateral agent and an issuer , jpmorgan chase bank , n.a . , as the syndication agent and an issuer , the other agents party thereto and various financial institutions as lenders ( the “ lenders ” ) . the new credit facility refinances and replaces the 2013 amended credit facility . the new credit facility consists of a $ 200 million secured revolving line of credit with a term of five years and a $ 300 million secured term loan facility with a term of seven years . up to $ 100 million of the revolving line of credit will be available to certain of the company 's subsidiaries in the form of revolving loans denominated in euros . under the terms of the new credit facility , the company is entitled , subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions , to request additional commitments under the revolving line of credit or term loans in the aggregate principal amount of up to $ 200 million to the extent that existing or new lenders agree to provide such additional commitments and or term loans . the refinancing of the 7.875 % senior notes and the 2013 amended credit facility reduced interest expense and further enhanced strategic flexibility . outlook during 2014 , the company made significant progress on its value creation strategy by reducing infrastructure costs , improving gross margins and reshaping the business portfolio . the company has renewed its strategic focus on its core glass-based coatings business by divesting its specialty plastics business and substantially all of the assets in our north america-based polymer additives assets in the second half of 2014. during the fourth quarter of 2014 , the company also made an investment in the core coatings business by successfully acquiring vetriceramici , a manufacturer of high end tile coatings . through the divestitures of specialty plastics and our no rth america -based polymer additives businesses , we realized net cash proceeds of $ 237.8 million , portions of which were used to pay down debt , as well as fund the acquisition of vetriceramici . at december 31 , 2014 , our cash balance was $ 140.5 million , which will provide financial flexibility to pursue additional strategic options in 2015. going into 2015 , we are focused on the successful integration of our acquisition of vetriceramici . we are focused on achieving the identified acquisition synergies and will continue to execute our value creation strategy including pursuing value-creating growth opportunities in our core performance materials businesses and pursuing opportunities to optimize our cost structure and make our business processes and systems more efficient , and optimize tax planning opportunities . during 2015 , we also expect to face some challenges , particularly as it pertains to foreign currency movements , specifically the euro , which we expect to have a significant negative impact on our 2015 reported operating results , relative to 2014 exchange rates . in 2014 , 45.0 % , of our net sales excluding precious metals originated from europe . the results of these business , as they are reported in u.s. dollars , would be adversely impacted by movement in the euro exchange rate , assuming foreign currency rates remain unchanged from current levels . in addition , the company anticipates continued pricing pressure in our performance coatings segment , principally related to our tile products . in 2014 , negative pricing impacted our performance coatings reportable segment sales by approximately $ 19.0 million . 20 in 2015 , we will continue our focus on divesting our europe-based polymer additives assets , including the antwerp , belgium dibenzoates manufacturing assets , and related polymer additives european headquarters and lab facilities . the assets associated with this facility are currently classified held-for-sale on our consolidated balance sheets , and we remain committed to the established plan to divest this asset . for 2015 , we expect sales growth of 10 – 12 % , including the addition of vetriceramici and excluding the adverse impact of the changes in foreign currency . story_separator_special_tag gross profit decreased from 2013 , and was driven by favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 4.3 million , lower product pricing impacts of $ 19.0 million , favorable raw material impacts of $ 12.2 million , lower manufacturing costs of $ 1.3 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 2.2 million . replace_table_token_18_th net sales in 2014 decreased $ 11.8 million compared with 2013 due to lower sales in all regions . the decline in sales in europe was attributable lowe r sales of our porcelain enamel products , partially mitigated by higher sales of tile products , including 27 vetriceramici sales during december . the decline in sales in 2014 in latin america , compared to 2013 , was due to lower sales of our tile color and porcelain enamel products , partially mitigated by higher sales of digital inks products . the decline in asia pacific was driven by lower sales of tile products , primarily frits and glaze products , which was partially mitigated by higher sales of digital inks products . the decline in the united states was all attributable to porcelain enamel products . performance , colors and glass replace_table_token_19_th net sales excluding precious metals increased $ 21.2 million in 2014 compared with 2013 , with increases in all of our product lines . net sales excluding precious metals were impacte d by higher sales volumes of $ 21.8 million , unfavorable mix of $ 1.1 million , higher product pricing of $ 2.6 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 2.1 million . gross profit in creased in 2014 , compared with 2013 , due to favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 17.8 million , higher product pricing impacts of $ 2.6 million , unfavorable raw material impacts of $ 6.7 million , l ower manufacturing costs of $ 9.2 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 0.7 million . replace_table_token_20_th the increase in 2014 in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 21.2 million compared with 2013 reflected higher sales in all regions and in all product lines . pigments , powders and oxides replace_table_token_21_th 28 net sales excluding precious metals decreased in 2014 compared with 2013 , primarily due to the sale of our north american and asian metal powders business and exit of solar pastes , which comprised approximately $ 27.5 million of the decrease . the remainder of the decrease in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 8.1 million was primarily due to lower sales of our surface polishing materials in 2014 compared with 2013. gross profit declined in 2014 compared with 2013 and wa s primarily the result of exited and sold businesses , which contributed to $ 6.0 million of gross profit in the prior year that did n ot recur in the current year . the decrease in gross profit in 2014 was due to lower sales volumes and mix of $ 15.1 million , which was partially mitigated by favorable raw material impacts of $ 2.6 million and lower manufacturing costs of $ 5.0 million . replace_table_token_22_th the decrease in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 35.6 million in 2014 , compared with 2013 , was due to lower sales in the united states , latin america and asia pacific , which were partially mitigated by higher sales in europe . the decline in sales in the united states and asia pacific was primarily driven by the sale of our north american and asian metal powders business which contributed $ 27.5 million in the prior year that did not recur . also contributing to the decline in the u.s. was lower sales of our surface polishing materials . partially mitigating the decline in asia pacific were higher sales of ou r pigments products . the decline in latin america was driven by lower sales of our pigments products . comparison of the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 performance coatings replace_table_token_23_th 29 sales increased in performance coatings primarily due to increased sales of our frits and glazes , porcelain enamel and digital ink products of $ 11.1 million , $ 6.4 million and $ 12.4 million , respectively . the higher sales were partially offset by a decline in colors of $ 19.3 million and other tile products of $ 6.3 million , including $ 2.2 million of lower sales volume due to the sale of our argentinian borate mine in 2013. sales were impacted by higher sales volumes of $ 3 0.1 million , favorable mix of $ 4.5 milli on , lower product pricing of $ 27.0 million and favorable foreign currency impacts of $ 6.1 million . gross profit increased from 2012 , and was driven by favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 9.5 million , lower product pricing of $ 30.9 million , lo wer manufacturing costs of $ 41.3 million and favorable foreign currency impacts of $ 1.5 million . replace_table_token_24_th the net sales increase of $ 6.7 million compared with 2012 reflected higher sales in all regions , except latin america . the increased sales in europe was attributable to higher sales of our porcelain enamels , digital inks and frits and glaze products , partially offset by lower sales of our color products . the decline in sales in latin america , compar ed to 2012 , was due to lower sales in all product lines except frits and glazes and digital inks . the increased sales in asia pacific were driven by higher sales of our frits and glazes , digital inks and porcelain enamels , partially offset by lower sales of color products . the united states remained relatively flat as compar ed to 2012 with a 2.4 % increase in porcelain enamel sales . performance colors and glass replace_table_token_25_th 30 net sales excluding precious metals increa sed compared with the prior year , primarily driven by sales of our decorative and industrial products , partially

cash flows from investing activities increased approximately $ 58.0 million in 2014 . the incre ase was driven primarily by ne t proceeds from the sales of our north america-based polymer additives assets and specialty plastics business of $ 149.5 million and $ 88.3 million , respectively , partially offset by cash outflows of $ 108.9 million for the acquisition of vetriceramici and $ 6.7 million to acquire certain commercial assets of a reseller of our porcelain enamel products in turkey . capital expenditures increase d $ 19.5 million in 2014 , compared with 2013. the higher capital expenditures were costs incurred for the ongoing project at our antwerp , belgium facility . financing activities . cash flows from financing activities increased $ 18.6 million in 2014 , compared with 2013. the increase was due to net borrowing s on our term loan facility of $ 300 .0 million , partially offset by the repayment of the 7.875 % senior notes of $ 260.5 million . further , we had a cash outflow of $ 44.4 million in 2014 , a decrease of $ 45.1 million compared with 2013 , related to repayment of debt outstanding under our accounts receivable securitization program that expired during the year , as well as our revolving credit facility that was amended during 2014. we have paid no dividends on our common stock since 2009 . 32 capital resources and liquidity major debt instruments that were outstanding during 2014 are described below . new credit facility on july 31 , 2014 , the company entered into a new credit facility ( the “ new credit facility ” ) with a group of lenders to refinance the majority of its then outs tanding debt , as discussed below . the new credit facility consists of a $ 200 million secured revolving line of credit with a term of five years and a $ 300 million secured term loan facility with a term of seven years . the new credit facility replaces the prior $ 250 million revolving credit facility and provided funding to repurchase the 7.875 % senior notes .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```cash flows from investing activities increased approximately $ 58.0 million in 2014 . the incre ase was driven primarily by ne t proceeds from the sales of our north america-based polymer additives assets and specialty plastics business of $ 149.5 million and $ 88.3 million , respectively , partially offset by cash outflows of $ 108.9 million for the acquisition of vetriceramici and $ 6.7 million to acquire certain commercial assets of a reseller of our porcelain enamel products in turkey . capital expenditures increase d $ 19.5 million in 2014 , compared with 2013. the higher capital expenditures were costs incurred for the ongoing project at our antwerp , belgium facility . financing activities . cash flows from financing activities increased $ 18.6 million in 2014 , compared with 2013. the increase was due to net borrowing s on our term loan facility of $ 300 .0 million , partially offset by the repayment of the 7.875 % senior notes of $ 260.5 million . further , we had a cash outflow of $ 44.4 million in 2014 , a decrease of $ 45.1 million compared with 2013 , related to repayment of debt outstanding under our accounts receivable securitization program that expired during the year , as well as our revolving credit facility that was amended during 2014. we have paid no dividends on our common stock since 2009 . 32 capital resources and liquidity major debt instruments that were outstanding during 2014 are described below . new credit facility on july 31 , 2014 , the company entered into a new credit facility ( the “ new credit facility ” ) with a group of lenders to refinance the majority of its then outs tanding debt , as discussed below . the new credit facility consists of a $ 200 million secured revolving line of credit with a term of five years and a $ 300 million secured term loan facility with a term of seven years . the new credit facility replaces the prior $ 250 million revolving credit facility and provided funding to repurchase the 7.875 % senior notes .
```    
 Suspicious Activity Report : the acquisition is expected to improve our growth opportunities by enhancing our product portfolio and improving our position in important growth markets , including the u.s. , mexico , turkey , and eastern europe . we expect to achieve favorable synergies and cost reductions . disposition of the specialty plastics business during the third quarter of 2014 , we completed the sale of substantially all of the assets in our specialty plastics business to a. schulman , inc. for $ 91.0 million in cash . the sale resulted in a gain of $ 54.9 million and net cash proceeds of $ 88.3 million . cash 19 proceeds were used to pay down the 7.785 % senior notes , as discussed below . this disposition was part of our value creation strategy , as we turn our focus to our core functional coatings and color businesses . acquisition of turkey assets during the third quarter of 2014 , the company acquired certain commercial assets of a reseller of our porcelain enamel products in turkey for a cash purchase price of $ 6.7 million . our porcelain enamel sales to this entity in 2013 were approximately $ 6.0 million . this action was an initial step to strengthen sales in growing geographic markets , such as turkey . 7.875 % senior note tender offer as discussed in note 8 , we completed a tender offer for our senior notes resulting in the purchase of $ 143.0 million of notes , with the remaining outstanding notes of $ 107.0 million being redeemed during the third quarter of 2014. new credit facility as discussed in note 8 , on july 31 , 2014 , the company entered into a new credit facility ( the “ new credit facility ” ) with pnc bank , national association ( “ pnc ” ) , as the administrative agent , the collateral agent and an issuer , jpmorgan chase bank , n.a . , as the syndication agent and an issuer , the other agents party thereto and various financial institutions as lenders ( the “ lenders ” ) . the new credit facility refinances and replaces the 2013 amended credit facility . the new credit facility consists of a $ 200 million secured revolving line of credit with a term of five years and a $ 300 million secured term loan facility with a term of seven years . up to $ 100 million of the revolving line of credit will be available to certain of the company 's subsidiaries in the form of revolving loans denominated in euros . under the terms of the new credit facility , the company is entitled , subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions , to request additional commitments under the revolving line of credit or term loans in the aggregate principal amount of up to $ 200 million to the extent that existing or new lenders agree to provide such additional commitments and or term loans . the refinancing of the 7.875 % senior notes and the 2013 amended credit facility reduced interest expense and further enhanced strategic flexibility . outlook during 2014 , the company made significant progress on its value creation strategy by reducing infrastructure costs , improving gross margins and reshaping the business portfolio . the company has renewed its strategic focus on its core glass-based coatings business by divesting its specialty plastics business and substantially all of the assets in our north america-based polymer additives assets in the second half of 2014. during the fourth quarter of 2014 , the company also made an investment in the core coatings business by successfully acquiring vetriceramici , a manufacturer of high end tile coatings . through the divestitures of specialty plastics and our no rth america -based polymer additives businesses , we realized net cash proceeds of $ 237.8 million , portions of which were used to pay down debt , as well as fund the acquisition of vetriceramici . at december 31 , 2014 , our cash balance was $ 140.5 million , which will provide financial flexibility to pursue additional strategic options in 2015. going into 2015 , we are focused on the successful integration of our acquisition of vetriceramici . we are focused on achieving the identified acquisition synergies and will continue to execute our value creation strategy including pursuing value-creating growth opportunities in our core performance materials businesses and pursuing opportunities to optimize our cost structure and make our business processes and systems more efficient , and optimize tax planning opportunities . during 2015 , we also expect to face some challenges , particularly as it pertains to foreign currency movements , specifically the euro , which we expect to have a significant negative impact on our 2015 reported operating results , relative to 2014 exchange rates . in 2014 , 45.0 % , of our net sales excluding precious metals originated from europe . the results of these business , as they are reported in u.s. dollars , would be adversely impacted by movement in the euro exchange rate , assuming foreign currency rates remain unchanged from current levels . in addition , the company anticipates continued pricing pressure in our performance coatings segment , principally related to our tile products . in 2014 , negative pricing impacted our performance coatings reportable segment sales by approximately $ 19.0 million . 20 in 2015 , we will continue our focus on divesting our europe-based polymer additives assets , including the antwerp , belgium dibenzoates manufacturing assets , and related polymer additives european headquarters and lab facilities . the assets associated with this facility are currently classified held-for-sale on our consolidated balance sheets , and we remain committed to the established plan to divest this asset . for 2015 , we expect sales growth of 10 – 12 % , including the addition of vetriceramici and excluding the adverse impact of the changes in foreign currency . story_separator_special_tag gross profit decreased from 2013 , and was driven by favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 4.3 million , lower product pricing impacts of $ 19.0 million , favorable raw material impacts of $ 12.2 million , lower manufacturing costs of $ 1.3 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 2.2 million . replace_table_token_18_th net sales in 2014 decreased $ 11.8 million compared with 2013 due to lower sales in all regions . the decline in sales in europe was attributable lowe r sales of our porcelain enamel products , partially mitigated by higher sales of tile products , including 27 vetriceramici sales during december . the decline in sales in 2014 in latin america , compared to 2013 , was due to lower sales of our tile color and porcelain enamel products , partially mitigated by higher sales of digital inks products . the decline in asia pacific was driven by lower sales of tile products , primarily frits and glaze products , which was partially mitigated by higher sales of digital inks products . the decline in the united states was all attributable to porcelain enamel products . performance , colors and glass replace_table_token_19_th net sales excluding precious metals increased $ 21.2 million in 2014 compared with 2013 , with increases in all of our product lines . net sales excluding precious metals were impacte d by higher sales volumes of $ 21.8 million , unfavorable mix of $ 1.1 million , higher product pricing of $ 2.6 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 2.1 million . gross profit in creased in 2014 , compared with 2013 , due to favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 17.8 million , higher product pricing impacts of $ 2.6 million , unfavorable raw material impacts of $ 6.7 million , l ower manufacturing costs of $ 9.2 million and unfavorable foreign currency impacts of $ 0.7 million . replace_table_token_20_th the increase in 2014 in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 21.2 million compared with 2013 reflected higher sales in all regions and in all product lines . pigments , powders and oxides replace_table_token_21_th 28 net sales excluding precious metals decreased in 2014 compared with 2013 , primarily due to the sale of our north american and asian metal powders business and exit of solar pastes , which comprised approximately $ 27.5 million of the decrease . the remainder of the decrease in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 8.1 million was primarily due to lower sales of our surface polishing materials in 2014 compared with 2013. gross profit declined in 2014 compared with 2013 and wa s primarily the result of exited and sold businesses , which contributed to $ 6.0 million of gross profit in the prior year that did n ot recur in the current year . the decrease in gross profit in 2014 was due to lower sales volumes and mix of $ 15.1 million , which was partially mitigated by favorable raw material impacts of $ 2.6 million and lower manufacturing costs of $ 5.0 million . replace_table_token_22_th the decrease in net sales excluding precious metals of $ 35.6 million in 2014 , compared with 2013 , was due to lower sales in the united states , latin america and asia pacific , which were partially mitigated by higher sales in europe . the decline in sales in the united states and asia pacific was primarily driven by the sale of our north american and asian metal powders business which contributed $ 27.5 million in the prior year that did not recur . also contributing to the decline in the u.s. was lower sales of our surface polishing materials . partially mitigating the decline in asia pacific were higher sales of ou r pigments products . the decline in latin america was driven by lower sales of our pigments products . comparison of the years ended december 31 , 2013 and 2012 performance coatings replace_table_token_23_th 29 sales increased in performance coatings primarily due to increased sales of our frits and glazes , porcelain enamel and digital ink products of $ 11.1 million , $ 6.4 million and $ 12.4 million , respectively . the higher sales were partially offset by a decline in colors of $ 19.3 million and other tile products of $ 6.3 million , including $ 2.2 million of lower sales volume due to the sale of our argentinian borate mine in 2013. sales were impacted by higher sales volumes of $ 3 0.1 million , favorable mix of $ 4.5 milli on , lower product pricing of $ 27.0 million and favorable foreign currency impacts of $ 6.1 million . gross profit increased from 2012 , and was driven by favorable sales volumes and mix of $ 9.5 million , lower product pricing of $ 30.9 million , lo wer manufacturing costs of $ 41.3 million and favorable foreign currency impacts of $ 1.5 million . replace_table_token_24_th the net sales increase of $ 6.7 million compared with 2012 reflected higher sales in all regions , except latin america . the increased sales in europe was attributable to higher sales of our porcelain enamels , digital inks and frits and glaze products , partially offset by lower sales of our color products . the decline in sales in latin america , compar ed to 2012 , was due to lower sales in all product lines except frits and glazes and digital inks . the increased sales in asia pacific were driven by higher sales of our frits and glazes , digital inks and porcelain enamels , partially offset by lower sales of color products . the united states remained relatively flat as compar ed to 2012 with a 2.4 % increase in porcelain enamel sales . performance colors and glass replace_table_token_25_th 30 net sales excluding precious metals increa sed compared with the prior year , primarily driven by sales of our decorative and industrial products , partially

