Portugal Cimpor, Secil 2005 sales down

Sales of Portuguese cement producers Cimpor and Secil fell in 2005 for a third year in a row, registering declines of 3.3 per cent year-on-year, according to Portugal’s Finance Ministry data reported on January 18, 2006 by Portuguese bank Millennium bcp (BCP).  The overall sales for the year were mainly dragged down by the poor results in the first quarter of 2005, BCP added without providing details. Cimpor and Secil 2005 sales were below the preliminary projections of economy analysts of BCP. 
 
According to BCP, Cimpor and Secil sales on the domestic market remained flat, while the earlier projections of the bank foresaw a growth of 1.0 per cent.  BCP expects cement consumption to stay unchanged in the next few years. 

The bank maintained its recommendation rating on the shares of Portuguese industrial holding group Semapa, which controls Secil. BCP recommends "buy" on the Semapa stock with a price target of 7.0 euro ($8.46) per share.
 
Shares of Semapa were traded at 7.38 euro ($8.92) per share on Portuguese stock exchange Euronext Lisbon on January 18, 2006.  Cimpor shares, in turn, were traded at 4.79 euro ($5.79) on the same date. (Source: Jornal de Negocios)