Moda and Scoop trade show organiser posts jump in revenue

Corporate event manager ITE Group Plc said third-quarter revenue rose 25 percent, helped by contributions from the biennial Moscow International Oil & Gas exhibition and revenue from the acquisition of an event organiser in Malaysia.

The British company, which organises around 200 trade exhibitions and conferences each year in 14 countries, gets almost half its revenue from Russia.

The Moscow International Oil & Gas exhibition, the largest oil and gas trade event in Russia and Central Asia, directly affects the company's profit.

"This year we have a profit forecast of 8 percent, the next year it's around 1.5 percent and in 2015 its again 8 percent due to scheduling of the Moscow International Oil & Gas exhibition" Westhouse securities analyst Rod Davidson told Reuters.

The event manager, which has been growing by acquiring stakes in smaller exhibition and conference organisers, acquired Malaysia's Metaltech earlier this year.

It has also acquired another company and entered a joint venture in Southeast Asia this year, with an eye on expanding into developing corporate-events markets, such as India, Turkey and Russia.

Revenue for the quarter ended June 30 rose to 95 million pounds ($143.49 million) from 76 million pounds a year earlier.

Like-for-like revenue at the organiser of exhibitions and conferences for industries ranging from mining and energy to fashion and hospitality rose 8 percent from a year earlier.

ITE said it booked sales worth 184 million pounds ($277.92 million) for this financial year and remains confident in the full-year outcome.

The company had reported a 15 percent fall in first-half profit due to rising overhead costs and the absence of two key biennial events in Russia.

Shares in the company were trading down marginally at 298 pence at 0919 GMT on Tuesday on the London Stock Exchange. They have risen 9.5 percent over the past quarter.