Louis Dreyfus Profit Rises 3.8% as Tax Offsets Lower Food Prices
- Sales fall 11% as market remains ‘difficult’ as China slows
- Shipped volumes rise 1% on grains, oilseeds and metals
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Louis Dreyfus Co., one of the world’s four biggest food-commodities traders, said first-half profit rose 3.8 percent as a lower effective tax rate countered tumbling prices and reduced trading opportunities.
Net income rose to $135 million in the six months to June 30, from $130 million a year earlier, Dreyfus, the world’s largest rice and raw-cotton trader, said Thursday in a statement. Deferred taxes recognized in income totaled $107 million in the period, helping to lower the effective tax rate to 10 percent.