Sri Lanka Royal Ceramic net down 15-pct

Nov 13, 2012 (LBO) - Sri Lanka's Royal Ceramic Plc, a group which makes tiles and toilet fittings said profits fell 15 percent to 420 million rupees in the September 2012 quarter, from a year earlier.

 The group reported earnings of 3.79 rupees per share. In the six months to September the group reported earnings of 4.48 rupees per share in accounts filed with the Colombo Stock Exchange.

 Royal Ceramics said net revenues rose 5.5 percent to 1.8 billion rupees and cost of sales rose at a faster 7.7 percent to 935 million rupees, allowing gross profits to grow at a slower 3 percent to 865 million rupees.

Associate company profits rose to 143 million rupees from 16.9 million rupees.

The state raised taxes on toilet fittings and ceramic goods this year, making house building more expensive to citizens, but giving more tax arbitrage profits to ceramic industrialists.

Sri Lanka's ceramic tile makers are no longer efficient enough to compete in export markets.

In February prices of kerosene which was previously heavily subsidized and used by the ceramic industry was also market priced.

source - www.lbo.lk