Holcim Philippines Inc. and Cemex Holdings Philippines Inc. reported weak earnings in the third quarter of the year as higher sales were offset by increased cost.
Holcim Philippines said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it registered a third-quarter profit of P176.8 million, down nearly 100 percent from P337.4 million year-on-year.
Third-quarter sales rose eight percent to P8.51 billion from P8.26 billion a year ago even as heavy rains dampened demand.
The cost of sales in the third quarter, however, increased 10.5 percent to P7.32 billion from P6.62 billion in 2017.
“Our top line continued to grow positively in the third quarter thanks to our ongoing successful commercial initiatives. Results though were partly impacted by inclement weather tempering demand and pricing pressures. However, our financial performance continued to be affected by the steady rise in the costs of fuel, power, and distribution as well as imported production inputs caused by the peso’s depreciation,” Holcim Philippines president and chief executive John Stull said.
“Amid these challenges, we remain focused on sustaining the improvements in plant productivity and lowering our costs to better support the strong construction activity nationwide and deliver profitable growth to our shareholders,” he added.
Holcim Philippines booked a net income of P1.74 billion in the nine-month period, down 24 percent on year.
Meanwhile, Cemex Philippines reported a consolidated net loss of P70 million during third quarter, a reversal from a P202-million net income in the same period in 2017.
Third-quarter sales, however, rose eight percent to P6 billion from P5.5 billion in 2017 as volume rose five percent.
“Higher input-cost inflation continues to be a challenge for the company. We are implementing several initiatives to improve our profitability and deliver value for our customers and shareholders,” Cemex Holdings president and chief executive Ignacio Mijares said. He noted that cement demand in the country remained strong.
“In line with this, we recently formalized the agreement with CBMI Construction Company of China for the construction of a new cement-production line in our Solid Cement Plant in Antipolo, Rizal,” Mijares said.
The new facility is expected to increase Cemex Holdings’ production capacity by 1.5 million tons.