Greek Thessaloniki Port H1 net sinks 34% on strike

Greece's Thessaloniki Port Authority (OLTH) said on Thursday that first-half net profit dropped 34 percent due to strike action which led to reduced revenues.

Net profit at Greece's second-largest container port slipped to 4.3 million euros ($6.36 million) from 6.6 million in the same period last year, while sales fell 16 percent to 26.6 million euros, the company said in a statement.

The drop is mostly attributed to the strikes through the first half of the year, that led to a decline in container traffic as companies diverted some of their business to ports other than Thessaloniki, the company said.

OLTH, which is 74 percent state-owned, said annual financial results are expected to be further affected by the strikes by dockers, who oppose the government's privatisation of the port's container business.

In July, Hutchison Port and Greek pharmaceutical Alapis were named the preferred bidder in a tender to update and run the port's cargo facilities for up to 35 years.

OLTH shares have lost about 13 percent since the start of the year, outperforming the Athens stock market general index which is down about 37 percent.

Its shares trade at about 20 times estimated 2008 earnings, compared to a multiple of about 13 for the pan-European sector of marine ports, according to Reuters Estimates.