Oriental Weavers First Quarter Profit Falls

Cairo, Egypt, May 14, 2010--Oriental Weavers reported a 5% drop in first-quarter net profit on lower domestic demand.

Net profit was $17.3 million, the company said on Thursday, on revenue of $915 million.

"The drop in local sales was due to the lack of capacity as the increase in export orders had to be serviced. Furthermore local demand for consumer products dropped," the firm said in a statement.

The company's tufted carpets segment reported a 14.5% drop. "The segment faced relentless competition and there were issues arising with the production line," OW said.

Export sales, however, increased by 15%. Oriental Weavers sells 45% of its goods locally, where it has an 85% market share. It exports the rest to over 100 countries.

Exports to the U.S. by 13%. Strongest growth was to China, up 34%.

"We anticipate that local demand will recover in the second quarter and reach its highest level in the third quarter due to the seasonality of the industry," oW said.