Group consolidated sales rose 9% to BGN 167.4m YoY, reversing the decline recorded a year ago, shows the consolidated financial report of the Bulgarian tobacco monopoly released on Thursday. Domestic sales increased only 2% while the export of tobacco and cigarettes almost doubled, said Bulgartabac’s executive director Hristo Lachev. Earnings have taken a back-seat to retaining market share in terms of priority at the moment, said the company official. Tough competition from import brands forced the company to mark down some of its offerings in early 2007 thus avoiding further market share erosion. On the operational level things have remained pretty much unchanged with EBITDA margin of 13% (14% for H1 2005). The downside comes below the EBIT line, with the Holding reporting almost BGN 5m in losses from investments. Earlier this year, the tobacco holding divested its equity holdings in tobacco processing companies Sandanski BT, Dupnitsa-Tabak and Smolian Tabak. After the sale is realised, any inter-group receivables that have been written down must be accounted for, hence the losses from investments in the consolidated results. Duly, net profit fell 27% YoY to BGN 3.5m. The battering that the sales of BTH’s cigarette-making units are taking from duty-free imports coupled with the latest in a series of excise hikes planned for 2008 is putting in doubt the outlook for a substantial pick-up in the performance of the holding as a whole in 2008.