Company news: RAK Ceramics profit up

RAK Ceramics

Ras Al Khaimah Ceramics posted an 89 per cent increase in second-quarter profit as the manufacturer of ceramic products cut costs. Net income climbed to Dh113 million ($31 million) from Dh60 million a year earlier, the company said in a statement to the Abu Dhabi stock market on Wednesday. Cost of sales declined 14 per cent to Dh602 million, while revenue fell 5 per cent to Dh835 million. The shares closed 0.9 per cent lower at Dh1.07 in Abu Dhabi yesterday. The stock has lost 27 per cent this year compared with a 6.3 per cent increase for the benchmark ADX General Index.

Commercial International Bank

Commercial International Bank said net profit in the second quarter rose 18 per cent on the year as net interest income surged and Egypt’s biggest lender by market value reigned in expenses. The bank made a consolidated net profit of 523 million Egyptian pounds (Dh317.3 million, $86 million), up from 443 million pounds in the year earlier, CIB said in an emailed statement on Wednesday. The net profit result beat the 481 million-pound effort that analysts at EFG Hermes had predicted, and was also ahead of the 490 million pounds pencilled in by analysts at Beltone Financial. “Alongside healthy top-line growth, strict control over expenses resulted in improving efficiency ratios and margins,” said CIB Chairman and Managing Director Hesham Ezz Al Arab. “Even with the higher cost of risk resulting from Egypt’s prolonged economic recovery, CIB is well on course to achieving outstanding full-year results.” CIB said revenues in the second quarter rose 23 per cent to 1.23 billion pounds. The lender said it generated consolidated net interest income of 1.8 billion pounds in the first six months of the year, a 43 per cent rise on the year earlier period. CIB shares closed up 1.3 per cent at 28.43 pounds on Tuesday.

Orascom Telecom Holding

DUBAI: Egypt’s Orascom Telecom Holding (ORTE.CI) said Tuesday it swung to a second-quarter net profit of $27 million as it increased the number of subscribers and data usage. In the year earlier period, Orascom Telecom reported a net loss of $58 million, according to an emailed statement. The net profit for the latest quarter fell short of the $57 million that Cairo-based EFG-Hermes had predicted. It also missed Beltone Financial’s forecast of $70 million. Orascom Telecom said the total number of subscribers at the end of June was up 15 per cent from the same period last year, reaching more than 83 million customers. Revenue for the second quarter rose 9 per cent to $934 million. “Consolidated revenues recorded an organic growth of 9 per cent year-on-year, resulting from strong subscriber growth and an increase in data and value-added services uptake in our main subsidiaries, namely in Algeria, Pakistan and Bangladesh,” said Chief Executive Ahmad Abou Doma said in the statement. Last year, Russian mobile operator VimpelCom acquired the assets of Wind Telecom, Orascom Telecom’s parent company, in a deal worth $6 billion. Orascom Telecom shares closed Tuesday up 1.1 per cent at 3.65 Egyptian pounds ($0.60) on the Egyptian Stock Exchange.

Apicorp

DUBAI Saudi Arabia-based Arab Petroleum Investments Corp (Apicorp) said on Tuesday net profit in the second quarter surged to $20 million, compared with $2 million a year ago, helped mainly by lower costs and higher lending activities. The quarterly profit was “achieved on the back of Apicorp’s ability to continue reducing its funding costs while increasing lending activity, amidst the withdrawal of European banks from financing regional projects,” Apicorp said in an emailed statement. The firm, owned by the 10-member Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OAPEC, said total assets rose 18 per cent in the first half of the year to $5.12 billion, compared with the year earlier. First-half net profit meanwhile stood at $51 million versus $41 million for the same period of 2011. In February, Apicorp raised 2.5 billion Saudi riyals ($667 million) in a three-year, syndicated Sharia-compliant facility from four local lenders to bolster its balance sheet.

Kayan Petrochemical Co.

RIYADH: Saudi Kayan Petrochemical said on Wednesday it has started commercial operations at an amines plant in its massive new complex in Jubail Industrial City. Kayan expects to produce 100,000 tons of ethanol amines annually, as well as 40,000 tons of ethoxylates, the company said in a statement on the website of the Saudi stock exchange. Ethanol amines’ uses include treating natural gas and producing disinfectants. Ethoxylates are used in detergents. Saudi Basic Industries Corp. (), the Middle East’s largest listed company, is Kayan’s largest shareholder. Sabic says its Kayan complex will have annual production capacity of more than 4 million tons of petrochemicals and chemicals when it becomes fully operational. Kayan has posted steep quarterly losses since starting commercial operations at the majority of its plants late last year. Share prices were unchanged at the close of the market on Tuesday, at 13.80 Saudi riyals ($3.7).