Siam Cement Group’s first quarter profit climbs

The firm (SCG) announced its operating performance for the first quarter of 2013, showing growth in all businesses.

The company recently undertook a strategic business restructuring whereby the cement, building materials and distribution were consolidated into one business unit and is referred to as “SCG Cement-Building Materials.” This business restructuring and SCG’s latest investment in Prime Group, showed its regional business expansion.

SCG’s unreviewed consolidated financial statements and its subsidiaries for the first quarter showed a profit of 8,796 million baht, an increase of 47 per cent year on-year. Revenue from sales increased 6 per cent to 109,439 million baht on higher sales volume in the paper and cement-building materials businesses.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the profit increased 27 per cent, benefitting from the seasonal volume growths in the cement-building materials business, and the recovery of chemicals margins. Revenue from sales increased 10 per cent.

As for SCG business in ASEAN markets outside Thailand, first quarter sales revenue amounted to 8,280 million baht an increase of 36 per cent from the same period of last year.

Total assets of SCG in ASEAN as of March 31 amounted to 53,634 million baht which is 13 per cent of total assets of SCG.

The total assets of SCG as of March 31, 2013 amounted to 407,940 million baht.

“SCG continues to enhance its capabilities and offerings within ASEAN, towards the leader of construction materials market in the region, and follow the vision of becoming an ASEAN sustainable business leader by owning 85 per cent stake in Prime Group, Vietnam’s leading building materials manufacturer that is valued at 7,200 million baht,” SCG chairman Kan Trakulhoon said. “This latest investment has propelled SCG to become the world’s largest ceramic tiles producer with highest production capacity of 225 million square metres, combined with productions in ASEAN countries including 48 per cent in Thailand, 33 per cent in Vietnam, 14 per cent in Indonesia, and 5 per cent in the Philippines.”