Bahrain Duty Free reported a profit of $4.4m for Q2, representing a 12.7 percent drop compared to last year.

A statement on the company’s website said the reduction was “due to a reduced income from one investment which in 2013 paid out an exceptionally large dividend”.

Profit before dividend income was $2.9m, an increase of 9.1 percent versus the same quarter last year.

There was also an increase in passenger volume of 14.1 percent (total of 1.6m), which contributed significantly to the $19.5m sales, increasing 12.1 percent compared to last year.

Operating costs were also up by 4.3 percent, which they company says was due to increased marketing activities and additional depreciation charges incurred.

For the six months combined, recorded net income was $9.3m, down by 1.7 percent when compared to the same period last year.

Passengers were 3.1 million and ahead of last year by 6.7 percent. Sales recorded a total of $36.5m representing an increase of 10.6% over the first six months of 2013.

Chairman Farouk Almoayyed said that from an operational perspective, this has been a great quarter and first half year where sales have delivered a solid performance exceeding expectations.

Managing Director Abdulla Buhindi said the company is well positioned to complete its capital program in the airport, with the next phase due for completion at the end of September.