Belgium’s Associated Weavers to Post 1st Half Loss
Ronse, Belgium, May 27--Associated Weavers International, leading producer of tufted and woven carpet, will not be able to conclude the first half of 2005 with a profit.
On May 31, Associated Weavers International will conclude its first six months. For the tufting division it will be concluded with a loss because both the margins and the volumes are under pressure.
"Removing the pressure on the margins resulting from extremely high raw materials prices is taking longer than anticipated because in the meantime consumer spending for interior decoration has dropped, particularly in the United Kingdom. Furthermore the carpet sector is still confronted with overcapacity. The combination of all these factors makes it extremely difficult to raise our retail prices sufficiently," states Henri Van Dierdonck, Managing Director of Associated Weavers International.
The weaving division – which was disappointing last year – is reaping the benefits of the completed reorganisation efforts and is performing remarkably better. The impact of this on the group’s results is limited, however, since the weaving division is significantly smaller than the tufting division.
"This difficult economic situation has already lasted eight months. We are doing everything possible to limit the impact of this," states Dries Bossuyt, General Manager of Associated Weavers International. "From experience we know that the second six months are better in our sector than the first because of seasonal fluctuations."
The complete results for the first half of 2005 will be disclosed on Thursday, 30 June 2005.
