ONE of Kidderminster's largest carpet manufacturers has recorded a "difficult" year after being forced to close of one of its main sections because of poor sales.

Victoria Plc, of Worcester Road, had a turnover of £53.2m last year compared to £54.6m for the financial year ending April 2004.

The loss in turnover was incurred after it decided to stop weaving Axminster carpets because of cheap exports.

Chairman Bob Gilbert said: "The board was extremely sad that it had to take this decision which affected the livelihoods of so many loyal and skilled people.

"The decision was announced in February with an anticipation that the cost of closure would run to £1.2m. The necessary redundancies and arrangements for the plant to be sold were made by the end of March."

Mr Gilbert added that he could not see the situation improving, but the company was doing its best.

"The economic outlook for the UK, Australia and Ireland is, at best, flat, and we do not foresee the return of more favourable economic conditions during this financial year," he said.

"However, a lot of competitors have gone under, but we are still here, despite market conditions worse than we have experienced in a decade."

Mike Hardiman, of the Carpet Foundation, the UK carpet industry's leading body, backed by 14 top manufacturers and 1,155 independent retailers, said the industry as a whole was suffering.

He said: "There is absolutely no doubt that 2004 and the first half of 2005 have been very difficult for the carpet industry.

"This is down to all sorts of reasons but it's quite clear that what the politicians are saying about a strong economy are not borne out by the reality.

"The housing market is down and with people worried about interest rates and taxes likely to go up, moving and interior design are all things that can be postponed.

"But Victoria is a strong, good quality manufacturer and, hopefully, this is merely a blip."