Bulgaria's Stara Planina Hold 9-mo Net Profit Falls 21.2% Y/Y to 2.6 Mln Euro

The company's expectations for next year are not optimistic because of falling demand, it said in a statement.

Following are the figures from Stara Planina Hold's consolidated income statement (in million levs):

Stara Planina Hold raised its consolidated net profit 3.6 times to 8.15 million levs in 2007.

The holding company holds stakes in battery maker Elhim-Iskra, Hydraulic Elements & Systems (HES) and hydraulic equipment manufacturer M+S Hydraulic, all listed on the Sofia stock exchange.

Shares in Stara Planina Hold, part of the broader BG 40 index, closed 4.9% higher at 1.89 levs in small volumes on Thursday. The financial statement was released after the end of trading.

(1 euro = 1.95583 Bulgarian levs)