Italcementi sells 45.6Mt of cement in 2003

The Italcementi group generated a turnover of €4285m last year, an underlying improvement of 3.6% and up by a marginal 0.5% in absolute terms.  The European Union accounted for 71.9% of the total, or €3080m, with 12.3%, or €526m coming from North America.  While sales value rose by 2.8% in the European Union, there was an underlying 3.7% decline in North America, down by 16.5% when converted into Euros.  The Black Sea and North American businesses, Bulgaria, Turkey and Morocco, generated a turnover of €382, an underlying increase of 10.5%.  The Asian business, covering Thailand and India advanced by an underlying 18.2% to €186m, with Thailand accounting for all of the growth, while the international trading operations accounted for the remaining €111m of turnover.  The operating profit, when published next month, is expected to show a decline, principally because of the weakening of most of the foreign currencies in which the group trades.

Cement and clinker sales rose by 2.1% to 45.6Mt, representing a turnover of €2594m or 60.5% of the group total.  Excluding acquisitions the tonnage rose by 1.9%.  Currency weakness outside the European Union led to a 2.3% decline in the turnover figure, but at the underlying level there was a 2.1% increase.  Ready-mixed concrete deliveries improved by an underlying 9.7% to 20.9 cu,m, while the aggregates volume was 0.9% lower at 54.9Mt to give a turnover from concrete and aggregates 7.0% higher at €1492m. 

Ciments Français, which covers virtually all of the operations outside Italy, reported at turnover of €2899m, up by an underlying 3.4%, of which France represented a virtually unchanged €1178.  That leaves Italy, and three of the batching plants in Greece, contributing €1,386m, an increase of 4.1%.  Again by deduction, the Italian cement business would have generated sales of €730m, little changed on the previous year.