RAK Ceramics posts Dh625.7 million Q3 revenue

RAK Ceramics said on Wednesday that third quarter performance had gained momentum with a 52.1 quarter-on-quarter surge in revenue as markets show signs of recovery from the impact of Covid-19.

Total revenue remained stable and increased by 0.2 per cent year on year to Dh625.7 million for the quarter, driven by growth in Saudi Arabia and Europe. Excluding the tableware business, total revenue increased by 4.8 per cent year on year.

Net profit fell to Dh34 million from Dh45.6 million due to lower gross profit margins and higher provisions for trade receivables. Total EBITDA dropped to Dh104.4 million from Dh108.7 million, the company said in a statement.

The global ceramic giant said production in the UAE has scaled up to meet demand from Saudi Arabia while production in India and Bangladesh have also resumed in phases. The tableware business continues to suffer due to the impact of Covid-19 on the hospitality and airline sectors.

The imposition of anti-dumping duty on tiles from China and India has been effective since June 2020 and has supported revenue growth during the quarter.

Revenue from Saudi Arabia increased by 95.8 per cent year on year to Dh137.8 million mainly driven by the tiles business, while revenue in Europe surged by 12.9 per cent to Dh91.5 million due to the easing of lockdowns resulting in improved economic activity. Revenue in India has also rebound to pre-Covid levels to Dh66.7 million, said the statement.

Abdallah Massaad, group CEO, RAK Ceramics, said the company has shown great resilience given the disruptions that the pandemic has brought to its business.

“We have begun to see a return to pre-Covid-19 levels of operations across our global business. While the sanitaryware and tableware business remains impacted, our tiles business has witnessed healthy growth in Europe and Saudi Arabia, leading to an increase in overall revenue,” Massaad.

“There is no escaping that our business was heavily impacted earlier in the year, but we are confident in our ability to adapt, recover and deliver value to our shareholders in the long term. Looking ahead, we will continue to implement initiatives to manage the impact of Covid-19. We also plan to diversify and improve profitability in export markets, while focusing on improving operations in India and Europe,” Massaad said.

-- issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com