KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 16): British American Tobacco (Malaysia) Bhd’s earnings slipped 1.1% to RM180.65 million from RM187.72 million a year ago.

It said on Thursday that revenue rose 2.9% to RM987.26 million from RM959.16 million. Its earnings per share were 63.30 sen compared with 64 sen.

BAT declared a fourth interim dividend of 66 sen per share, tax exempt under the single tier exempt system for the financial year ended Dec 31, ember 2011.

For the financial year ended Dec 31, 2011 its earnings fell 1.5% to RM719.61 million from RM731.11 million in FY10, mainly due to a lower effective tax rate in 2010 than 2011. However, its revenue rose 4.1% to RM4.127 billion from RM3.965 billion.

“The group experienced a 1.3% decline in volumes as a result of decreased consumption and the still high levels of illegal cigarettes which stands at 36.1%,” it said.