KUALA LUMPUR (May 24): Lafarge Malaysia Bhd shares fell 3.43% early today albeit in thing trade after its net profit fell nearly 72% to RM20.65 million in the first quarter ended March (1QFY16) from RM73.69 million a year ago, on lower contribution from its cement segment, following continued price competition.

At 9.15am, Lafarge lost 29 sen to RM8.17 with 4,200 shares traded.

One-off Holcim integration costs also affected earnings, its bourse filing yesterday showed.

"The higher share of loss in an associate, coupled with higher depreciation charges and higher finance cost arising from the borrowings raised late last year to fund the acquisition of Holcim Malaysia, also contributed to the group's lower profit before tax," it said.

Its interest income of RM600,000 for the current quarter was also lower compared with RM1.9 million in the corresponding quarter last year, due to lesser amount of funds placed on short term deposits.

Quarterly revenue, meanwhile, slipped 3.8% to RM669.78 million from RM696.09 million a year earlier, mainly attributed to lower sales contribution from its cement segment, due to stiff competition in the market and continued pricing pressures.