JAKARTA (Indonesia Today) – State-owned mining company PT Aneka Tambang (ANTM) Tbk booked net profit of Rp476 billion in the first half of 2012, dropped by 53% from the same period last year due to squeezed margins.

The company generated sales revenue of Rp4.49 trillion in the first half ended June 30, down slightly from Rp4.89 trillion in the corresponding period of 2011. As cost of sales grew 11.8% to Rp3.62 trillion in the period, gross profit slashed by around 47% to Rp871.7 billion.

Operating expenses also soared by 24%, mostly due to higher administrative and general expenses. This cuts further operating profit by 68% to Rp402 billion.

ANTM booked Rp476 billion of net profit mostly because of higher dividends from associated companies and Rp127.7 billion of gain in foreign exchange translation, while cost of finance skyrocketed to Rp127.6 billion from Rp7.5 billion in the first half of 2011.