Lafarge Malayan Cement 2Q pre-tax profit rises

Lafarge Malayan Cement 2Q pre-tax profit rises
25 August 2011


Lafarge Malayan Cement Bhd’s pre-tax profit for the second quarter ended June 30, 2011 increased to MYR104.093m (US$34.9m) from MYR91.429m in the corresponding quarter last year.

The company attributed the better result mainly to a higher revenue and share of better results from its associated company but added that this was partly offset by the higher cost of fuel and raw materials.

The 10 per cent in electricity tariff effective June 1, further added to the cost of production, it said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia.

Its revenue for the quarter rose to MYR667.415m from MYR591.193m previously, backed by higher domestic volumes coupled with better domestic and export prices and higher sales of other building materials.

For the six months period, its pre-tax profit rose to MYR172.955m from MYR148.461m in the corresponding period last year.

Its revenue rose to MYR1.270bn from MYR1.140bn.

The group’s revenue for the half-year was higher than the corresponding period last year by 11 per cent mainly due to higher domestic sales volume and better selling prices which partly offset the higher production costs particularly fuel.

On prospects, it said domestic demand for cement and other building materials would continue to grow following the implementation of major infrastructure projects and property development.
Published under Cement News