German construction materials group HeidelbergCement said Thursday it aimed to bolster earnings and profits in 2013 after strong growth in Asia and Africa drove a solid performance last year. "The managing board has set the objective of further increasing revenue and operating income in 2013 and significantly improving profit before

tax," the firm said in its annual earnings statement. Operating profit grew by nine percent last year compared with the previous period to 1.6 billion euros ($2.1 billion) on turnover of 14.02 billion euros, also a gain of nine percent. Sales of cement rose by 1.4 percent year-on-year "because the positive development in sales volumes in North America, Asia-Pacific and Africa-Mediterranean more than offset the weak demand in Europe." The firm said it was expanding aggressively in areas it perceives to be growth markets. In 2012, it commissioned cement mills in Bangladesh and Ghana and expects to start new operations in Indonesia and Liberia during the course of this year. "Consequently, HeidelbergCement is gradually creating new potential for further growth," the firm said in a statement. Investors appeared to be cheered by the results, with HeidelbergCement stock rising 3.3 percent on the DAX stock market of leading German firms, outperforming the wider index, which was up 0.74 percent overall.