Oriental Weavers, the world’s largest maker of machine-woven carpets, posted a 6 percent drop in second-quarter net profit, as a fall in cash from a government stimulus program offset sales growth.
Net income after minority interest was LE 61 million ($10.72 million) in the three-month period, the company said, on revenue up 23 percent at LE 973 million.
Net income fell because of "the absence of the substantial one-off (extra) monetary amount that was given in the first half of 2009 by the government as part of the economic stimulus package," the company said in a statement.
In the first half of 2010, state spending to boost the firm’s activities totaled LE 54 million, down from to LE 85.8 million in the same period of 2009.
Oriental Weavers sells 45 percent of its goods on the local market and has an 85 percent share of Egypt’s carpet industry. It exports the remainder to more than 100 countries.
It said second-quarter revenue grew thanks to a strong pick-up in export sales of 35 percent, driven mostly by Europe and North America.
