Indocement posts Rp 1t in net profit

Indocement posts Rp 1t in net profit

JAKARTA: Indonesia's second largest cement producer PT Indocement Tunggal Prakarsa said on Monday it booked a net profit of Rp 1.041 trillion (about US$110 million) in 2002, swinging from net loss of Rp 63.1 billion in 2001 thanks to foreign exchange gains.

The company said net foreign exchange gains amounted to Rp 848.8 billion during the reporting year, compared with Rp 319.5 billion in losses a year earlier, as the rupiah appreciated against the dollar.

Indocement, like many Indonesian companies, is exposed to the rupiah's fluctuations due to its dollar-denominated debt.

Its net revenues rose to Rp 3.948 trillion from Rp 3.453 trillion, which drove gross profit up 20 percent to Rp 1.299 from Rp 1.082 trillion a year earlier. Germany's Heidelberger Cement AG. owns a 61.70 percent stake in the company. -- Dow Jones