BT2.7-BILLION FALLOUT
Siam Cement hit hard by closure
Siam Cement Plc is expected to recognise post-tax impairment of assets and investment amounting to about Bt2.7 billion in this quarter.
The country's largest cement conglomerate said in a report to the Stock Exchange of Thailand yesterday that the impairment would be recognised after its subsidiary, Thai CRT, ceased operations next month. Last year, Thai CRT, which manufactures television picture tubes, recorded consolidated sales of Bt4.9 billion, a net loss of Bt1.2 billion and assets and liabilities of Bt5.9 billion and Bt4.7 billion, respectively. Siam Cement said the net loss could be attributed to rapid developments in liquid-crystal-display technology. As well as Siam Cement, Mitsubishi Electric Corp (Japan), Mitsubishi Corp (Japan), the Crown Property Bureau, Thai colour-television manufacturers and member companies of the Federation of Thai Industries' Electrical, Electronics and Allied Industries Club are shareholders in Thai CRT. It has two wholly owned subsidiaries: CRT Display Technology Co Ltd and Thai Electron Gun Co Ltd. Kim Eng Securities (Thailand) said that in the second half of last year, the maker of cathode-ray tubes reported a net loss of Bt4.5 billion. Meanwhile, Siam Cement said it had agreed to sell a 14.5-per-cent stake in Siam United Steel (1995) to the steelmaker's existing shareholders for about Bt2 billion. The after-tax non-recurring profit from the sale will be about Bt1.6 billion and is expected to be booked during this year's fourth quarter. After the deal, Siam Cement's stake in the company will be reduced to 5 per cent. The company said the disposal was in line with Siam Cement's policy of concentrating only on its core business. Siam United Steel (1995), a producer of cold rolled steel, is located in Rayong province. It has an annual production capacity of 1 million tonnes. Last year, it posted sales of Bt23 billion and a net profit of Bt890 million. It has assets worth Bt21 billion. Kim Eng Securities forecast yesterday that Siam Cement's third-quarter normalised profit would be solid at about Bt9 billion, up 19 per cent on quarter and 12 per cent on year. The company is expected to release its third-quarter earnings figures next week. Siam Cement is also expected to pay an annual dividend of Bt15 per share for its 2006 performance.
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