May 8 (SeeNews) - Bosnian brewer Banjalucka Pivara [BANJ:BLPV-R-A] said its net profit dropped sharply to 519,000 marka ($290,600/265,360 euro) in the first quarter of the year, from 1.27 million marka a year earlier.
The decline is due to rising direct costs, inventory charges and a further increase in marketing costs, Banjalucka Pivara said in a financial statement on its website.
The company's operating profit decreased slightly to 9.76 million marka in the three months through March from 9.96 million marka a year earlier, while operating costs rose to 9.04 million marka from 8.27 million marka.
In January the company lost an important contract in Croatia, which accounted for 8,000 hectolitres in sales last year.
"We are working on recovering these volumes through other new projects," Banjalucka Pivara said, adding that results are expected to improve through the year.
Banjalucka Pivara is based in the Serb Republic - one of the two entities that form Bosnia. The other is the Federation.
(1 euro=1.95583 Bosnian marka)