Orascom Construction’s (OC) net income slid 45% in 1Q 2022 due to deepening losses at Besix, according to its earnings release (pdf). The construction giant reported a USD 13.1 mn profit in the January-March quarter, down from USD 23.9 mn last year, as Belgium-based construction group’s losses widened to USD 11.0 mn from USD 1.4 mn in 1Q 2021.

Excluding Besix: Orascom reported a USD 24.1 mn profit for the quarter, down almost 5% y-o-y, reflecting a “positive contribution from all of our operating businesses,” CEO Osama Bishai said. Revenues for the period grew 20% y-o-y to USD 979.7 mn.

OC’s consolidated backlog rose more than 2% to USD 5.5 bn, with new awards dropping 7% y-o-y to USD 617.5 mn. Egypt accounted for two-thirds of the company’s backlog, followed by the US (25%) and Saudi Arabia (2%). Besix’s standalone backlog rose almost 8% y-o-y to a record USD 5.0 bn, “an encouraging level that should provide a path to sustained profitability,” said OC CEO Osama Bishai. Pro forma backlog including OC’s share in Besix rose 2% y-o-y to record USD 8.3 bn.

Orascom is proposing to pay out USD 27 mn dividends in 3Q 2022, equal to USD 0.2313 per share.

What they said: “This backlog is in-line with the level achieved a year earlier despite the devaluation of the EGP. Such resilience is supported by our high-profile infrastructure projects in Egypt that are denominated in foreign currency alongside our projects in other markets in the Middle East, Africa, and the United States,” Bishai said.

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Madinet Nasr Housing and Development’s (MNHD) consolidated net income rose 4% y-o-y in 1Q 2022 to EGP 120.2 mn, according to the company’s earnings release (pdf). The developer’s revenues jumped 82% y-o-y to EGP 818.4 mn during the quarter.

MNHD’s gross contracted sales more than doubled to EGP 1.56 bn during the quarter with its mixed-use development Sarai accounting for more than half of the quarter’s contracted sales value. The company sold a total of 553 residential units during the January-March period, up 86% y-o-y, with Sarai comprising 56% of units sold. Deliveries rose 81% y-o-y to 361 units, including 176 units in Taj City, 174 in Sarai, and 11 at its subsidized housing project Nasr Gardens.

Looking ahead: The company is looking to double down on the commercial property market as a “major plank” of its strategy to “give less focus to sales of raw land parcels and … leverage its reach and knowhow in real estate development,” CEO Abdallah Sallam said. MNHD is also looking into setting up a “full-fledged commercial leasing business” and expand its work in co-developments of (and joint ventures in) non-residential projects.

MNHD’s earnings go deep on strategy and offer new detail on the company’s operational and financial performance.

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GB Auto’s net income slid 23% y-o-y in 1Q 2022 to EGP 229.4 mn, the company said in its latest earnings release (pdf), blaming an EGP 211 mn foreign exchange loss following the EGP devaluation in March. Revenues rose 15% y-o-y during the quarter to EGP 7.8 bn.

In detail: Revenues from the auto and auto-related segment grew 12% y-o-y in 1Q to EGP 6.1 bn. GB Capital reported revenues of nearly EGP 2.0 bn, up 15% y-o-y.

Looking ahead: “While the current state of the global business environment is uncertain

and poses some operational challenges, we are confident that our strategies and business fundamentals will carry us forward through the challenging times,” CEO Nader Ghabbour said. The company will continue monitoring the impact of macroeconomic developments including the EGP devaluation and global inflationary pressures on consumer purchasing power, he added.