KIBBUTZ SHAMIR, Israel—In unaudited financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2008, Shamir Optical Industry (Nasdaq: SHMR) posted a 25.4 percent rise in revenues to $37.1 million, compared to $29.6 million for the second quarter of 2007. Gross profit for the quarter increased by 28.9 percent to $20.1 million, or 54.3 percent of revenues, compared to gross profit of $15.6 million, or 52.8 percent of revenues for the same period last year.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2008, operating income increased by 21.1 percent to $3.3 million, or 8.8 percent of revenues, compared to operating income of $2.7 million, or 9.1 percent of revenues for the same period last year. Net income for the quarter increased by 29.8 percent to $2.6 million compared to net income of $2.0 million for the comparable period in 2007.

Commenting on the results, Eyal Hayardeny, chief executive officer of Shamir, said, “The second quarter delivered many positives; Europe generated improved operating results and the U.S. made significant inroads. We maintained financial discipline in our operating units and we continued to develop our global opportunities.”

He added, “Progress continued toward advancing our European distribution network as we purchased the remaining 49 percent of Altra Trading GmbH, through which we hold our European operations. We are confident this purchase will enable us to efficiently manage our European operations. Europe is an important market for Shamir and we are committed to increasing our footprint in this geography and will continue to make appropriate investments in leadership, marketing and sales."

Hayardeny concluded, "In terms of our overall strategy, we continue to invest for long-term growth, while closely monitoring operational expenses. Our positive performance thus far this year, combined with our commitment to growth and operations position us to achieve the goals we have set forth for Shamir. Based on our results through the first six month of 2008, we reconfirm our previously announced forecasts of estimate for growth in the range of 10 percent to 16 percent, based on the December 2007 exchange rates and excluding the results of our Mexican operation.”