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Egypt's Oriental Weavers reports strong sales growth, anticipates problems ahead Carpet maker says operations will slow and sales may dip due to raw material prices
Egypt's Oriental Weavers, one of the world's major carpet manufacturers, has posted sales growth of 14 per cent year-on-year. Just-released figures for the 2010 financial year, ending 31 December, show total sales of LE4,060 million and a net profit of LE322m, marking a three per cent increase on the previous year. Gross profits rose by 16.5 per cent year-on-year to reach LE488m, suggesting a gross profit margin of 12.2 per cent versus 11.8 per cent in 2009. Earnings before interest rose by 3.3 per cent to LE702m. But the manufacturer has also predicted a downturn this year, with an official telling Reuters they expect operations to retreat to 70 per cent during the first half of 2011. Haitham Abdel Menem, Investor Relations Manager of the company, stated during a conference organized by the Association of Investor Relations Development and sponsored by Thomson Reuters that Oriental Weavers anticipates operation rates returning to around 90-95 % by the end of 2011. The company expects sales growth to retreat in 2011 due to the increasing price of raw materials.
