Union Cement Company, reported a rise in its net profit for the first six months of 2012 of US$5.6m, reversing the US$2.4m loss reported in 2011.

The advance is attributed to higher selling prices of cement and clinker this year which more than compensated for a decline in sales to US$88.3m.

The company said that margins had improved as a result of management attempts to reduce overheads both through trimming procurement costs and optimising production capacity.

Cost of sales fell to 81.3 per cent, compared with 94.8 per cent in 2011. This is despite spending an extra US$18.7m on plant and equipment – the bulk of which was spent on a waste heat recovery plant.