Oman: Raysut Cement Company, the Sultanate's biggest cement producer, has announced a 64.1% growth in net profit to US$63.7m for 2012, compared to US$38.8m for 2011. The company said its revenue also moved up to US$241m from US$216m, while cost of sales was edged up to US$163m from US$161m.
"A net profit of US$20m for the fourth quarter was higher than our estimate of US$15.3m, as Raysut booked an investment gain of US$3.53m. Excluding this investment gain, the recurring net profit was only 8% above our estimate," said EFG Hermes in a research note. The note added that Raysut expects stable to moderate increases in cement prices and solid year-on-year volume growth to be sustained, backed by infrastructure developments in Oman.