May 21, 2008. /Lesprom.com/. Precious Woods increased net sales of timber and energy by 187% to $33.3 million compared to the same period of the prior year. The 1Q operating result increased by 59% to $4.0 million and the net profit grew by 48% to $3.8 million compared to prior year.
Precious Woods achieves solid 1Q result
May 21, 2008. /Lesprom.com/. Precious Woods increased net sales of timber and energy by 187% to $33.3 million compared to the same period of the prior year. The 1Q operating result increased by 59% to $4.0 million and the net profit grew by 48% to $3.8 million compared to prior year. The increase in sales and profit was primarily due to the newly acquired companies in Gabon; however, organic growth still contributed 23% to the increase in trading sales.
The acquired business in Gabon developed well, in line with expectations: In the 1Q, the Gabonese companies achieved sales of $19.1 million and an operating profit of $1.9 million. Brazilian operations contributed $0.7 million to the operating profit, with the improvement mainly due to the restructuring programs implemented in the prior year. The temporary shut down of our saw mill in Belém will only impact cost in the second quarter.
On the other hand, the operating result of the trading company Precious Woods Europe lagged expectations. This company not only suffered from delays in shipments from Brazil at the end of 2007, but also from the increasing replacement values for timber.
