The liquor subsidiary of Philippine giant San Miguel, La Tondena Distillers, is expected to unveil a net profit of over 450 million pesos in the first quarter, a report by Dow Jones claims.


The news group quotes a source close to the company who said that strong sales have seen revenue in excess of PHP3 billion, which is represents double-digit growth from the year-ago period. Sales are thought to have increased by over 20%, thanks particularly to strong consumer demand in the south of the country.


“Despite cost pressures from higher raw material prices, La Tondena expects a favorable growth in profit from operations due to effective management of fixed costs,” the source said.


In the first quarter of 2002, La Tondena recorded a net profit of PHP411m on revenue of PHP2.6 billion.