Siam City Cement Profit Fell 14.5 %
Siam City Cement revealed that its Net Profit for 2016 fell by 14.5 per cent to Bt3.9 billion due to a difficult trading conditions in Thailand.
Significant one-time costs associated with acquisitions of Bt304 million offset by favorable coal prices, electricity tariff rates and a gain of Bt435 million from sale of stake in Holcim Cement (Bangladesh) Limited also contributed to the profit drop.
Siva Mahasandana, Chief Executive Officer, said the company's strategy to expand the business through key investments in Thailand and nearby regional countries had an immediate positive impact on sales.
"We have now secured new and significant footholds in economies growing at a faster rate than Thailand, locking in future export volumes for clinker and allowing existing kilns to continue operating at optimal capacity and efficiency. The full year benefits of these initiatives will continue to flow through into our 2017 performance,” he said
The outlook for 2017, Siva continued, is likely to remain highly competitive despite an anticipated uptick in cement demand in the domestic market. However, following a year of significant investment and transition, the new cement subsidiaries, particularly in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are expected help generate additional revenue and improved earnings for the group.
