Eastern Province Cement 2Q net profit slides

Saudi-based Eastern Province Cement Co (EPCC) said its net profits slid 25.5 per cent YoY in the second quarter of 2017 due to lower volumes and value of cement sales due to a drop in domestic demand.
 
Net profits stood at SAR35m in 2Q17, compared to SAR47m in 2Q16, according to a statement to the Saudi Stock Exchange. Quarter-on-quarter, net profits retracted 30 per cent. Sales tumbled 23.5 per cent to SAR159m in 2Q17, from SAR208m in the same period in the year before.
 
In the first half of this year, net profit declined by 35.8 per cent to reach SAR86m, compared to SAR134m in 1H16. Sales declined 20.1 per cent to SAR 362m in the six months to the end of June 2017, from SAR453m in the corresponding period a year earlier.