Mexican manufacturer Alfa sees revenues up in 2006

MONTERREY, Mexico (Reuters) - Mexican conglomerate Alfa said on Friday it expects to increase revenues by at least 14 percent this year and plans to hand out $120 million in annual and extraordinary dividends.

"With our internal growth (and) more acquisitions, Alfa is going to have significant growth," Alfa Chairman Dionisio Garza told reporters.

Alfa's revenues grew 14 percent last year.

"We are going to at least equal that," Garza said.

Garza said Alfa (ALFAA.MX: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is in talks about possible acquisitions in three business areas and is considering building a plant in China to manufacture engine parts and a food processing plant in the United States.

"China is going to be a superpower, which is why you have to be there," Garza said.

Alfa, which makes an array of products from carpets to cheese, also said it would pay an annual dividend of 9 U.S. cents per share, worth $54 million, and an extraordinary dividend of 11 cents per share, worth $66 million.

The company with revenues of $6.4 billion last year, spun off its Hylsamex steel unit in 2005 to Argentina's Techint. Alfa received $1.065 billion in its part of the deal which was around $2 billion in total.

Last year, Alfa paid an ordinary dividend of 8 U.S. cents and an extraordinary dividend of 25 U.S. cents after selling Hylsamex.  Continued...