Publicly listed tobacco companies are struggling to book profits in the face of higher costs, including clove used in kretek cigarettes, the Jakarta Post reported.

Of the three companies listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange, only PT Hanjaya Mandala Sampoerna, controlled by Philip Morris International (PMI), reported a higher profit for the first six months of  this year. PT Bentoel Internasional, controlled by British American Tobacco, reported a loss and PT Gudang Garam lower profit, the newspaper said.
Bentoel said its loss was due to a 13 per cent rise in materials and non-operational costs, the Post reported. A higher excise tax on cigarettes reduced sales volume. Gudang Garam said cost of sales rose 26 per cent.
A better clove harvest this year is expected to reduce costs, a Bentoel official told the newspaper.
Cigarette sales through the first half of 2012 rose nearly 7 per cent to 79.6 billion sticks, according to a PMI note cited in the newspaper report. (pi)