Siam City Cement Q4 net profit down 42 percent

BANGKOK, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Siam City Cement SCCC.BK, Thailand's second biggest cement maker, missed forecasts with a worse-than-expected 42 percent drop in fourth-quarter earnings on Friday due to weak cement demand.

SCCC, 32 percent owned by Swiss cement maker Holcim (HOLN.VX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), made an October-December quarter net profit of 412.6 million baht ($12.54 million), down from 706.1 mllion baht a year earlier, the company said in a statement.

The result was below the average 541.2 million baht profit forecast by four analysts polled by Reuters and lower than the 732.8 million baht earned in the third quarter.

Full-year 2007 net profit fell 17.5 percent to 3.23 billion baht and the firm would pay an interim dividend of 7.5 baht per share, the statement said.

Sales fell 3.6 percent to 22.8 million baht last year, while sales costs rose 0.6 percent as a result of higher fuel and electricity prices, it said. Fuel and electricity account for more than 70 percent of SCCC's costs.

SCCC cut production in January due to weak domestic demand and rising energy costs, reducing its annual output by 2.25 million tonnes to 10 million tonnes of clinker, it has said.

Sales for 2008 would fall to 22 billion baht, with net profit rising to 3.64 billion baht, according 11 analysts polled by Reuters Estimates.

SCCC raised selling prices by 12 percent late last year and that would help lift its profits, broker Phillip said.

Last month, bigger rival Siam Cement SCC.BK reported a better than expected 24 percent rise in quarterly profit, helped by strong petrochemical sales, while number three TPI Polene TPIP.BK said its fourth quarter net profit fell almost half.