Ricchetti Group reports first quarter in line with sector trends

Ricchetti Group reported a fall in volumes in the first quarter of 2008 in line with the general trend in the Italian ceramic tile sector, which is being increasingly hit by the rising costs of energy, raw materials and transport as well as the depreciation of the dollar and the crisis in the American property market, the largest non-European market for Italian tiles.

Consolidated turnover amounted to 67.8 million euro (compared to 71.8 million euro to March 2007). The decrease was mainly due to the fall in sales in the North American and European markets experienced by both Italian and foreign branches, with the exception of the Portuguese firm Cinca and the French company Hogan Ceramique which reported a superior performance to the first quarter the previous year.

Consolidated EBITDA totalled 5.5 million euro (compared to 8 million euro in 2007), while net operating result (EBIT) amounted to 2.8 million euro compared to the 5.1 million euro the same period the previous year.
Markets in the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and Russia offer good prospects for the coming months.