Its UAE home base will continue to be the "prime" market, the Saudi business will grow albeit from a low base and Egypt is "doing extremely well" as the company gains market share. Delores Johnson / The National
Its UAE home base will continue to be the "prime" market, the Saudi business will grow albeit from a low base and Egypt is "doing extremely well" as the company gains market share. Delores Johnson / The National
Its UAE home base will continue to be the "prime" market, the Saudi business will grow albeit from a low base and Egypt is "doing extremely well" as the company gains market share. Delores Johnson / The National
Its UAE home base will continue to be the "prime" market, the Saudi business will grow albeit from a low base and Egypt is "doing extremely well" as the company gains market share. Delores Johnson / T

Agthia's Q3 net profit plunges 15% on subsidy reform for flour and animal feed


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Agthia, the Abu Dhabi food and beverage company 51 per cent owned by state-owned conglomerate Senaat, posted a 15 per cent drop in third-quarter net profit because of the UAE’s subsidy reform for flour and animal feed.

Net profit attributable to equity owners in the three months ending September 30 reached Dh46.5 million compared with Dh54.8m a year earlier, Agthia said in a statement on the Abu Dhabi bourse, coming in below a forecast of Dh58.4m from EFG-Hermes.

Revenue grew 4.4 per cent to Dh498.9m from Dh477.8m.

The company, which has lost Dh112m in the first nine months in subsidy receipts compared to last year owing to the reforms taking place, is undertaking a programme of “growth generation and cost- cutting” to weather the changes in subsidies.

Net revenues of the agriculture segment in the first nine months of this year declined 12 per cent to Dh739m as the subsidies reform and cheap flour imports dented sales.

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Flour net revenue in the first nine months declined 8 per cent to Dh299m.

 "New wave of subsidy removals [on flour] – half of the subsidy in the bakery channel was taken out as of July 1 this year – exerted the expected and planned-for pressure on volume and profitability, as an additional and larger segment of the market is now open for free competition," the company said.

“An unexpected complication, which is slowly but rather persistently emerging not only for us but he UAE milling industry, is the cheap imported flour from different parts of the world where there is surplus capacity.”

Agthia said that foreign-branded flour is being sold at 15 to 20 per cent below market prices and even lower than Abu Dhabi’s subsidised prices.

The animal feed net revenue plunged 15 per cent to Dh441m.

“With about 70 per cent of the business non-subsidised for more than a year now, we demonstrated our capability and capacity to weather even unprecedented changes in this business by incurring subsidy-induced volume losses less than we initially anticipated,” said Agthia.

The company’s consumer segment, which makes up 53 per cent of net revenues, continued to grow, however.

Net revenue of water and beverages, which includes Al Ain water and Capri-Sun, rose 27 per cent to Dh695 in the first nine months of this year.

The food segment, which includes Yoplait dairy products, grew 2 per cent to Dh133m in the first nine months.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs: Fenyr SuperSport

Price, base: Dh5.1 million

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm

Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm

Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km

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The White Lotus: Season three

Creator: Mike White

Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell

Rating: 4.5/5

THE SPECS

Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo

Power: 275hp at 6,600rpm

Torque: 353Nm from 1,450-4,700rpm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto

Top speed: 250kph

Fuel consumption: 6.8L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: Dh146,999

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home. 

RESULTS

5pm: Watha Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 2,000m

Winner: Dalil De Carrere, Bernardo Pinheiro (jockey), Mohamed Daggash (trainer)

5.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 70,000 (D) 2,000m

Winner: Miracle Maker, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer

6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner: Pharitz Al Denari, Bernardo Pinheiro, Mahmood Hussain

6.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner: Oss, Jesus Rosales, Abdallah Al Hammadi

7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,400m

Winner: ES Nahawand, Fernando Jara, Mohamed Daggash

7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m

Winner: AF Almajhaz, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi, Khalifa Al Neyadi

8pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m

Winner: AF Lewaa, Bernardo Pinheiro, Qaiss Aboud.

Sole survivors
  • Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
  • Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

While you're here
At a glance

Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.

 

Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year

 

Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month

 

Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30 

 

Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse

 

Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth

 

Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances

THE BIO

Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979

Education: UAE University, Al Ain

Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6

Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma

Favourite book: Science and geology

Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC

Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.

THE SPECS

      

 

Engine: 1.5-litre

 

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

 

Power: 110 horsepower 

 

Torque: 147Nm 

 

Price: From Dh59,700 

 

On sale: now  

 
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Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Specs%20
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WOMAN AND CHILD

Director: Saeed Roustaee

Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi

Rating: 4/5

ESSENTIALS

The flights 
Emirates, Etihad and Swiss fly direct from the UAE to Zurich from Dh2,855 return, including taxes.
 

The chalet
Chalet N is currently open in winter only, between now and April 21. During the ski season, starting on December 11, a week’s rental costs from €210,000 (Dh898,431) per week for the whole property, which has 22 beds in total, across six suites, three double rooms and a children’s suite. The price includes all scheduled meals, a week’s ski pass, Wi-Fi, parking, transfers between Munich, Innsbruck or Zurich airports and one 50-minute massage per person. Private ski lessons cost from €360 (Dh1,541) per day. Halal food is available on request.

Third Test

Day 3, stumps

India 443-7 (d) & 54-5 (27 ov)
Australia 151

India lead by 346 runs with 5 wickets remaining

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Leap of Faith

Michael J Mazarr

Public Affairs

Dh67
 

Getting there

The flights

Flydubai operates up to seven flights a week to Helsinki. Return fares to Helsinki from Dubai start from Dh1,545 in Economy and Dh7,560 in Business Class.

The stay

Golden Crown Igloos in Levi offer stays from Dh1,215 per person per night for a superior igloo; www.leviniglut.net 

Panorama Hotel in Levi is conveniently located at the top of Levi fell, a short walk from the gondola. Stays start from Dh292 per night based on two people sharing; www. golevi.fi/en/accommodation/hotel-levi-panorama

Arctic Treehouse Hotel in Rovaniemi offers stays from Dh1,379 per night based on two people sharing; www.arctictreehousehotel.com

Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.

Our family matters legal consultant

Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Electric scooters: some rules to remember
  • Riders must be 14-years-old or over
  • Wear a protective helmet
  • Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
  • Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
  • Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
  • Do not drive outside designated lanes