Jurys Doyle report 12 per cent fall in half-year profits

Ireland’s largest hotel group Jurys Doyle has posted a 12 per cent drop in profits and has called the last financial year “the most challenging” the hospitality and tourism sector has faced in many years.

Group turnover posted for the first half of the current financial year which ended on October 31, 2001 reported an increase of 6 per cent to €137.9 million in comparison to the corresponding period in 2000. However interest costs increased from €8.5 million to €11.8 million reflecting the hotel group’s financing costs of recent investments particularly in the UK. As a consequence, and compared to the first six months of 2000, pre-tax profits decreased by 12 per cent to €28.8 million.

Jurys Doyle Group Chairman Walter Beatty praised staff situated in Jurys hotels all over the world. In a statement he said: “Management coped extremely well with the effects of the global economic slowdown and the setbacks during the period, most notable the attacks of September 11 in the USA.

“The outcome for the first six months is a credit to the enormous efforts made by the Group’s personnel at every level. I am very grateful to all our people for their loyalty and commitment in recent months, which contributed to ensuring that your Group performed to its highest potential during challenging times.

“We have a most attractive portfolio of properties consisting of hotels and inns in strategic city locations and consequently we are cautiously optimistic about the trading outlook for the remainder of the year.” (AMcE)