Greece’s Titan Q4 net profit seen flat

Titan, Greece's biggest cement producer, is expected to post flat fourth-quarter profits on Thursday, with higher sales in Egypt and Turkey offset by falling business at home and in the United States.
Net profit is forecast at 19.2 mln euros, compared with 19.7 mln in the fourth quarter of 2009, a Reuters poll found.
Sales at Titan, which runs cement plants in nine countries, have been hit by the collapse of the U.S. housing market and recession in Greece.
It has been growing elsewhere, having added 3 mln tonnes of production capacity in Egypt and Albania in recent months.
But unrest in Egypt and recession in its home market are threatening the company's prospects, analysts said.
"Political instability in Egypt and Greece's continuing downturn add substantial downside risk," Proton Securities analyst Panos Panagiotou said.
Titan shares have risen 7.4% this year, underperforming an 18% rise in the general Athens index, mainly over worries about Egyptian exposure.