WORLD - International organiser ITE Group has reported financial results in line with its 2010 expectations.
Revenue and profit before tax were both down on 2009, reflecting a year with fewer biennial shows. However, £74m of revenues are booked for 2011, which is 10 per cent ahead of last year on a like-for-like basis. Net cash remained about the same at £23m, which the company will use to support further expansion.
The group reported net assets of £72.6m for 30 September 2010, up from £56.7m for the same period in 2009, due to recent acquisitions in Ukraine, Turkey and India.
"Financially the business is about where it was at the end of 2008," ITE CEO Russell Taylor told EW, "except it's a stronger and broader business because we have made about £40m of acquisitions over the last two years, which have made up for the effects of the recession."
“Having stabilised earlier in the year, market conditions have now improved in all our markets and this is reflected in both the encouraging fourth quarter performance and the first quarter outlook,” said Taylor in a statement issued by the company. “While the outlook for the global economy remains uncertain, the actions taken during the last 18 months have strengthened the Group and ITE is well positioned to benefit from growth in its core markets and to capitalise on opportunities in other emerging markets.”
In November 2009, ITE acquired a small exhibition business in Delhi, running exhibitions for the paper and mining industries, a move the company hopes will provide a springboard for its events in one of the world’s fastest developing markets. “India does not yet have a mature exhibition industry and definitive international exhibitions have not yet been established,” said Taylor. “ITE has entered the Indian market with an aim to establish its brands and give it the best chance of winning a leading market position as the exhibition industry develops.”
He added that although the group’s Indian presence is still small, the country offers an opportunity for significant organic growth due to its exhibition industry being undersized in proportion to its economy.
The company hopes the recovery of the Russian economy will help fund its expansion into other emerging markets.
