Blommberg

Blommberg
Jakarta

PT H.M. Sampoerna, Indonesia's No. 2 cigarette maker by sales,
had a 51 percent gain in second-quarter profit, aided by higher
prices and local demand.

Net income rose to Rp 516.6 billion (US$57 million) in the
three months ended June 30 from Rp 342.9 billion a year ago.
Sales increased 24 percent to Rp 4.31 trillion. The figures were
derived by subtracting first-quarter numbers from six-month
figures released by the company on Friday.

Surabaya, East Java-based Sampoerna said in July combined
volume sales of cigarette companies in Indonesia, a nation of 235
million people, may grow as much as 10 percent this year as
faster economic expansion boosts cigarette purchases. Spending by
political candidates during this year's elections may also boost
sales in a market of 141 million smokers, the company said.

The company said in its earnings announcement today it raised
prices since the second half of last year. No details of the
price increase were given.

More than 153 million Indonesians will vote in the final round
of polling next week to choose directly for the first time their
president and vice president. The first round was held in July
after a parliamentary election in April.

Political parties distributed everything from cigarettes to
milk for infants to garner support during the campaigning, which
helped Sampoerna's sales. The parties may spend as much as $1.75
billion this year for the elections, Asian Development Bank
Senior Economist Ramesh Subramanian estimated in April.

Net income rose to Rp 1.09 trillion, or Rp 247 a share, in the
six months ended June 30 from Rp 786.8 billion, or Rp 179 a
share, a year earlier, Sampoerna said in an e- mailed statement.
Sales rose about a fifth to Rp 8.42 trillion.

Higher sales were helped by "our flagship brands, such as Dji
Sam Soe, A Mild, and Sampoerna A-Hijau," the company said in the
statement.

Sampoerna sold 20.2 billion sticks in the first six months,
more than the 17.7 billion sticks in the year-ago period.