BAT Malaysia Gains Share on Lower Volumes

Source from:  Tobacco Reporter 02/21/2010

British American Tobacco Malaysia's volume sales last year were 13.8 per cent lower than they were the previous year, but the company's market share gained 2.6 percentage points to take it to 54.6 per cent, according to a story in The Star. BAT said the main contributors to the strong market share performance were the global drive brands, Dunhill and Kent, which gained 1.9 and 1.4 percentage points respectively. Last year, BAT Malaysia's revenue, at RM3.92 billion, was down by 5.1 per cent on that of the previous year, while net profit was down by 8.0 per cent to RM746.8 million. Fourth quarter revenue was up by 1.8 per cent to RM1.02 billion while net profit, at RM172.8 million, was essentially flat. BAT said the decline in its full-year revenue was a result of the significant drop in volumes caused by the availability in the country of increasing quantities of illicit products and the contraction of the economy, partially offset by higher net pricing and improved sales mix. It added that it believed the operating environment during 2010 would continue to be challenging. Enditem