Gamma Holding's belting tech gains from rising demand, H1
26 Aug '05
9 min read
Car Fabrics was able to retain its market position in spite of difficult market conditions. Positive effects of cost reductions and an upward trend at Bhilwara Melba De Witte in India only partly offset the growing price pressure.
Exotic Fabrics was faced with difficult market conditions, particularly in Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana. While lower turnover was posted for the local brands Uniwax (Côte d'Ivoire) and GTP (Ghana), the top brand Vlisco (Netherlands) achieved slight growth. To further improve GTP's cost position, the business activities of Juapong Textiles Ltd. of Ghana were terminated with effect from 1 July 2005.
Juapong spun and wove cotton into cloth for its own production facilities in Ghana. Because of the low prices for cotton cloth in Asia, it had become cheaper to purchase than to produce it. Furthermore, the business unit is focusing more and more on marketing and branding and is actively confronting parties who infringe its designs and trademarks.
Financial data Financial expenses improved in the first half of 2005, decreasing to EUR 5.7 million (2004: EUR 6.4 million) as a consequence of lower interest rates and a lower average level of interest-bearing liabilities. Interest-bearing liabilities improved, decreasing to EUR 267.5 million (2004: EUR 279.3 million).
In June a new credit facility was arranged on much-improved conditions with a syndicate of six banks.
The effective tax rate fell from 36.7% to 34.3%, mainly due to the decrease in the natural tax rate.
marketing@alchempro.com
