6 - Vicat

9EXAMINATION OF THE FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS9.1. INTRODUCTION9.1.4. Elements of the income statementIn the Group’s consolidated financial statements preparedin accordance with IFRS standards, the principalitems of the income statement, which are furtherdiscussed below, are the followings :• sales, which are mainly composed of billings forproducts delivered and services rendered duringthe period, in particular on rebilled transport sales ;• goods and services purchased, which mainly comprisepurchases and variations in stocks of rawmaterials and fuels, electricity supplies and otherservices received (in particular maintenance costsand transport charges) ;• personnel costs, which incorporate the cost of salariesand social contributions related to personnelemployed directly by the Group, as well as participationand profit-sharing for companies in whichthese schemes exist and charges related to postemploymentbenefits ;• taxes and duties which represent taxes other thanthose based on the profit.Beyond the accounting aggregates presented in theincome statement, the principal indicators used bythe Group for measurement of financial and industrialperformance are EBITDA and EBIT, which are shownat the foot of the income statement as published.These aggregates are defined in Note 1.20. of theappendix to the consolidated financial statementsand the rationalization between Gross operating earnings,EBITDA, EBIT and Operating profit is presentedin Note 23. (see also Section 3. “Selected financialinformation” of this Registration Document).9.1.5. Effect of modifications to the scope andexchange rate variationsModifications to the scopeModifications to the scope of consolidation includeacquisitions (within the scope), disinvestments (beyondthe scope) and the changes in the method ofconsolidation of the Group’s subsidiaries (complementaryacquisitions or partial disinvestment).During the 2009 financial year, additional share holdingswhich did not lead to significant variations to theconsolidation scope were acquired. Furthermore, in2009 the Group went on to consolidate the companySinai White Cement using the equity method.As for the 2008 financial year, in its pursuit of externalgrowth, the Group acquired, in the second quarter,the assets of the Walker group, which is establishedin the United States in the region of Atlanta (Georgia)and is specialised in producing ready-mixed concrete.The Walker group includes 14 concrete batchingplants with a capacity of more than 700,000 m 3 .In October 2008, in Mauritania, the Group also acquired65 % of BSA Ciment SA, which owns a cementgrinding centre with an annual capacity of 450,000tons, a concrete batching plant and a precasting unit.These installations are ideally located near the capitaland the country’s main port area.In addition, in June 2008, the Group announcedthe creation of a joint venture with the Indian cementmanufacturer, Sagar Cements, established inthe state of Andhra Pradesh. The objective of thisoperation is to build a greenfield cement factory inGulbarga in the state of Karnataka. Production is tostart in 2012 at the latest. This operation is still subjectto the satisfaction of pending conditions in thecourse of 2010.Following the acquisition on January 1, 2007 of theconcrete and aggregates Swiss company Astrada,the Group acquired some assets which were not fullyin line with its commercial and industrial organization,and it was decided that these should be sold.This sale occurred on January 1, 2008.Exchange rate variationThe Group’s international establishment exposes itsresults to fluctuations of the currencies of each countrywhere the Group is established relative to the euro(i), as well as fluctuation of the currencies used byits subsidiaries for their business activities relative totheir operating currencies (ii).i. On the closing of each year’s accounts, the incomestatements of the subsidiaries are convertedinto euros at the average exchange rate for theperiod. The variations from one period to anotherbetween the different currencies in which theGroup operates relative to the euro result in variationsin sales and, more generally, income andexpense in euros, even though such variations donot reflect changes in the Group’s performance.For the purposes of comparison, the Group presents,in Note 19. of the appendix to the consolidated financialstatements for 2009, sales recomputed at constantscope and exchange rates compared to 2008.74 VICAT - 2009 registration document