Titan Cement Q1 loss widens as Greek demand declines
Titan Cement Co SA, Greece’s biggest producer of the building material, posted a wider loss in the first quarter as continued weak demand in Greece offset signs of a recovery in the U.S. market.
The Athens-based company reported a first-quarter loss of 27.1 million euros ($35.2 million) compared with a 19.4 million- euro loss a year earlier, according to a bourse filing today. Sales rose 7.8 percent to 243 million euros.
The cement maker expects 2013 to be another challenging year with demand in Greece expected to decline further in the first half of the year. Markets in southeast Europe will continue to be “adversely impacted” by the euro zone crisis, the filing showed.
In Egypt, the company said increased production costs, a weakening Egyptian pound and fuel supply problems overshadowed resilient demand. Market conditions in Turkey and the U.S. remain positive, the company said.
[Bloomberg]
