Lucky Cement 1Q net rises, updates on international expansion

Lucky Cement has reported a strong rise in profit after tax for the first quarter of the current fiscal year and provided a progress update on its expansion into Iraq and Democratic Republic of Congo.

The company declared an after tax profit of PKR2014m (US$21m) for the quarter ending 30 September 2012, representing an increase of 33.79 per cent higher than the same period of last year, thanks to higher domestic sales. Gross profit increased by 32.87 per cent as net sales revenue improved by 18.09 per cent to PKR8.852m against PKR7496m last year.

Domestic sales during the period under review registered growth of five per cent to 0.86Mt compared to 0.82Mt in the same quarter of FY12. However, exports dropped nine per cent from 0.62Mt to 0.56Mt during the first quarter of FY13. This, the company said, was mainly due to an intentional focus on domestic sales which contributed to an increase in its overall profitability.

Lucky Cement also reported progress on its joint venture investment for a cement plant in the Democratic Republic of Congo where plant and machinery has been negotiated and finalised with a  European supplier. Meanwhile, its investment in a grinding facility in Iraq a project team has been mobilised at the site.