UIC's profit down

JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed PT Unggul Indah Corporation (UIC) has announced an 85 percent decline in net profit to Rp 6.2 billion in 1997 from Rp 40.7 billion the previous year.

Company president Hartono Gunawan said in a statement yesterday that the sharp decline was caused by large foreign exchange losses due to the rupiah's sharp depreciation against the U.S. dollar.

He said the company included Rp 64.2 billion of its foreign exchange losses in its net profit calculation while capitalizing another Rp 197.8 billion into its fixed assets.

The company's net sales, however, rose 23 percent to Rp 454 billion in 1997 from Rp 368 billion the previous year, he said, from sharp increases in alkylbenzene sales to its subsidiaries in Australia and Vietnam.

He said the company had US$132 million in foreign debts as of last December. (aly)