Agility Q1 profit falls 10%

Kuwait's Agility, the Gulf's biggest logistics provider by market value, posted a 10 per cent fall in first-quarter profit, a company official said on Saturday.

The firm posted a net profit of KD37.5 million (Dh514m) in the first three months of 2008, down from KD41.7m (Dh574m) in the same period a year ago, the official told Reuters after a board meeting.

Earnings per share was 35.9 fils in the first-quarter compared with 39.9 fils a year ago. There are 1,000 fils to the dinar.

Analysts at Global Investment House surveyed by Reuters in March expected a first quarter net profit of KD42.9 million (Dh590m).

Gross revenues was up 16.33 per cent at KD443.1m (Dh6.1bn), compared to KD380.9m (Dh5.2bn) in the first quarter last year, said the official. A company statement is expected on Sunday. Agility Chief Executive Tarek Sultan told Reuters last month he expects revenue this year to rise about 12 per cent to $7bn. The firm, which generates much of its revenues from contracts with the US Army by supplying food and other services to US troops in Iraq, plans to increase its capital by 25 per cent by selling stocks to existing investors.

Agility plans to sell shares worth about KD120 million (Dh1.6bn) to finance expansion and cut its reliance on US military contracts, it said in April.

Shares of Agility fell 18.84 per cent this year, while Kuwait's main stock index gained more than 17 per cent on Tuesday's close, the last trading day.

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