Bamburi first-half pretax profit falls, Kenya

Kenya’s leading cement producer Bambur Cement posted a 12.86 per cent fall in pretax profit for the first half of this year to KES3.7bn (US$43.89m), hurt by financing costs that exceeded revenue growth, the company said on Friday.

The company, which is part of the Lafarge group, said turnover increased 17 per cent to KES19.2bn.

"The regional cement market will continue to be vibrant. Focus will be on retaining the upward trend of revenue growth," Bamburi said in a statement, adding that recent capacity enhancement would also help.

"The group will continue to capitalise on progress made in its cost control measures to cushion the top line."

Bamburi said its performance during the period had also suffered from higher costs of raw materials, transport and energy, on the back of higher costs of fuel.