Chihuahua, Mexico, July 15--The second quarter of 2004 saw Interceramic posting significant improvements over second quarter results in 2003, and marking gains over a lackluster first quarter of the year as well.
Record quarterly sales of US $84.8 million topped sales of US $72.2 million in the same quarter of 2003 by 17.5 percent. Larger sales volume and a better mix of products sold, pushed our gross income for the quarter up by 23.3 percent over last year.
For the first six months of the year, consolidated sales are up by 10.3 percent to US $161.3 million compared to US $146.3 million in the first semester of 2003.
The company moved much more product during the second quarter of 2004 than in the same period of 2003, increasing by 15.0 percent. Growth in both sales and product volume occurred in each of our major markets of Mexico and the United States.
In Mexico, sales for the second quarter jumped by 22.3 percent from the second quarter of 2003 to US $46.3 million from the US $37.9 million posted last year.
The amount of product sold by the company in Mexico during the second quarter of 2004 increased by 18.3 percent over the second quarter of 2003. For the first six months of 2004, sales in Mexico are up 10.6 percent over the first half of 2003, to US $88.3 million from US $79.9 million in 2003, while over the same comparative periods, product volume in Mexico is up by 11.4 from last year.
In the International markets, the company hit a record level of sales, and at US $38.4 million for the second quarter of 2004 bettered sales for the same period of 2003 by 12.2 percent.
The amount of product sold in the international markets increased as well, up by 9.9 percent over last year. For the six months, International sales of US $73.0 million are 9.9 percent higher than in the first six months of 2003, and the amount of product sold over the first six months of 2004 in the International markets grew by 7.1 percent over the first semester of 2003.
While operating expenses have been increasing over past periods in anticipation of substantially improved sales growth, in the second quarter of 2004 Interceramic attained a level of sales that kept well ahead of the ramped up expenditures. As a result, operating income for the second quarter of 2004 increased by 41.3 percent over the second quarter of 2003, hitting US $6.6 million compared to US $4.7 million in the second quarter last year. The company also recorded our highest EBITDA since the second quarter of 2002, and at US $11.1 million it is a 28.5 percent improvement over EBITDA of US $8.6 million in the second quarter last year.
The company opened its newest "Interceramic Tile and Stone Gallery" store in San Diego in June, the latest effort in a strategy of covering the immense Southern California market with high-margin generating company-owned stores.
Construction of a new tile plant in Chihuahua is proceeding.
