PPG appoints Joe Gette as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary

PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 11, 2025--

PPG (NYSE:PPG) today announced the appointment of Joe Gette, 53, currently vice president, deputy general counsel and secretary, as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, effective Jan. 1, 2026. He will also join the company’s operating and executive committees, reporting to PPG chairman and CEO Tim Knavish. In this role, Gette will succeed Anne M. Foulkes, 62, current senior vice president and general counsel, who has announced her intent to retire. Effective Jan. 1, Foulkes will transition to serve as senior vice president, legal and special projects, to ensure a smooth transition of general counsel responsibilities and oversee certain projects for the company. She will continue to report to Knavish in this new executive leadership role.

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“Joe has provided invaluable legal counsel to our businesses and for many of our acquisitions and divestitures throughout his two decades with PPG. His vast experience and proven leadership capabilities have helped PPG drive its transformation forward,” said Tim Knavish, PPG chairman and CEO. “Joe has a wealth of experience in many areas of law and has consistently provided valuable and practical counsel across the organization. In addition, as corporate secretary, Joe has been an important liaison and counsel for PPG’s Board of Directors. We congratulate Joe as he transitions into this important executive leadership role with the company and thank Anne for agreeing to remain a key part of the executive leadership team through the end of August 2026.”

Gette joined PPG in 2005 as an assistant counsel and has held roles of increasing responsibility since that time supporting several PPG business units, regional operations and serving as the lead transactional lawyer for the company. In 2018, Gette was appointed assistant general counsel, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and securities, and then in 2022 was named vice president, deputy general counsel and secretary. In his current role, Joe has corporate secretary responsibilities while continuing to provide oversight and support for the company’s corporate development activities. He also has oversight responsibility for securities and commercial legal activities for PPG’s U.S. and Latin America, North and South regions.

Prior to joining PPG, Joe worked for the law firm K&L Gates in Pittsburgh. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Allegheny College and his law degree from Vanderbilt University.

PPG: WE PROTECT AND BEAUTIFY THE WORLD®

At PPG (NYSE:PPG), we work every day to develop and deliver the paints, coatings and specialty materials that our customers have trusted for more than 140 years. Through dedication and creativity, we solve our customers’ biggest challenges, collaborating closely to find the right path forward. With headquarters in Pittsburgh, we operate and innovate in more than 70 countries and reported net sales of $15.8 billion in 2024. We serve customers in construction, consumer products, industrial and transportation markets and aftermarkets. To learn more, visit www.ppg.com.

The PPG Logo and We protect and beautify the world are registered trademarks of PPG Industries Ohio, Inc.

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Anne Foulkes, current PPG senior vice president and general counsel, has announced her intent to retire. Effective Jan. 1, 2026, Foulkes will transition to serve as senior vice president, legal and special projects, to ensure a smooth transition of general counsel responsibilities and oversee certain projects for the company.

PPG announced the appointment of Joe Gette, currently vice president, deputy general counsel and secretary, as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary, effective Jan. 1, 2026.

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Germany's troubled economy returned to modest growth last year after two years of falling output, official figures showed, as hopes rise that government spending on bridges, rail lines and defense may help end years of stagnation.

The expansion in gross domestic product of 0.2% for 2025 was fueled by stronger consumer and government spending while exports sagged under the weight of more restrictive U.S. trade policy under President Donald Trump, the German Federal Statistical Office said on Thursday.

That follows shrinkage of 0.5% in 2024 and 0.9% in 2023.

“Germany’s export business faced strong headwinds owing to higher U.S. tariffs, the appreciation of the euro and increased competition from China,” statistical office head Ruth Brand said in a statement accompanying the statistical release.

Expectations have risen for Germany to finally see stronger growth this year as the government under Chancellor Friedrich Merz implements plans to increase spending on infrastructure to make up for years of underinvestment. Meanwhile defense spending is rising due to a perceived higher level of threat from Russia after its invasion of Ukraine.

Germany has endured a period of extended stagnation following the COVID-19 pandemic. Higher energy costs following the war in Ukraine and increasing competition from China in key German specialties such as autos and industrial machinery have held back an economy that is heavily focused on exports. Then came Trump's imposition of higher tariffs, or import taxes, on goods from the European Union. The slow growth has also exposed long-term structural issues such as excessive bureaucracy and lack of skilled labor. A stronger euro has also made exports less competitive on price.

A group of leading economists has predicted 0.9% growth for this year but said that forecast could be at risk if the increase in government spending is unleashed more slowly than expected.

The German economy grew 0.2% in the last three months of 2025, according to available preliminary data.

FILE - Containers are piled up in the harbor in Hamburg, Germany, on Oct. 26, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst, file)