Cash Flow and Tax

The Company generated operating cash flow of $316 million and free cash flow of $175 million in the first quarter. Capital expenditures in the quarter were $137 million as the Company progressed on several key projects across the Engineered Materials and Acetyl Chain businesses. During the first quarter, Celanese returned $73 million in cash to shareholders via dividends.

The effective U.S. GAAP tax rate was 18 percent for the first quarter compared to 21 percent for the same quarter of 2021. The lower effective tax rate was due to non-recurring impacts of uncertain tax positions mainly due to lending terms related to internal treasury operations in the three months ended March 31, 2021. During the first quarter, the Company decreased the full year adjusted tax rate from 15 percent to 13 percent, primarily due to changes in jurisdictional earnings mix.