Lafarge Malayan Cement Bhd’s net profit for the year ended Dec 31, 2008 (FY08) jumped 27.6% to RM367.68m from RM288.15m a year earlier, on the back of higher sales and selling prices of cement.

Revenue for the year rose 16.6% to RM2.53bn from RM2.17bn while earnings per share improved to 43.3 sen from 21 sen.

Lafarge has declared a second interim dividend of 15 sen per share for FY08 that will be paid on April 8, 2009, bringing declared dividend for the year to 30 sen.

For the fourth quarter, Lafarge posted a 33.8% rise in net profit to RM119.13m from RM89.06m in 4Q07, boosted by a non-recurring gain of RM29.6m on sale of its certified emission reductions (CERs). Revenue for the three-month period rose 18.2% to RM641.39m from RM542.48m a year earlier.

“The favourable results are also attributable to better plant performance, the non-recurring gain on the sale of CERs and higher contributions from the Singapore cement operations,” Lafarge said in its announcement to Bursa Malaysia.

It also said selling prices were revised to compensate for the significant increases in production costs brought about by steep increases in coal, diesel and electricity prices.

For the year ahead, the building materials manufacturer expects cement demand to be slower in tandem with a decline in construction activities in the country.