CCCL reports 2Q13 net profit, Jamaica

Caribbean Cement Company Ltd (CCCL) has reported a second-quarter net profit as the Jamaica-based cement producer increased domestic market share and exports to Panama provide an extra boost to revenue.

In the second quarter of 2013, cement exports declined but local sales reached 150,000t to push revenues for the three-month period above JMD3bn (US$29.6m). The company made a profit for the second quarter of JMD359m. However, CCCL general manager attributed to the improvement to the company increasing its market share over the period, rather than a resurgance in domestic demand.

Cement shipments to Panama (a new market for CCCL since the 2Q13) reached 25,000t and accounted for close to 40 per cent of export sales in the June quarter.

For the six months to the end of June, net profit was still JMD137m in the red. The company would have reported better results were it not for its exposure to currency risk, from which it took a quarter-billion dollar hit in the second quarter and J$701m for the half-year. The last time the company reported a quarterly profit was back in March 2010 of JMD4.6m.

For the first half of the year, the company sold 302,000t in its home market of Jamaica, up by 6.4 per cent compared to the same period of last year. However, export volumes dropped 25 per cent. Overall volume sales fell by three per cent to 402,000t at the half year mark.

Full year cement sales for 2012 amounted to 755,000t, more than a quarter of which was sold to overseas markets.

CCCL is now aiming for growing exports to South America and hopes to enter the Venezuelan market under the commodity trading component of the PetroCaribe oil facility.