MILAN (Reuters) - Italian eyewear maker Safilo (SFLG.MI: Quote, Profile, Research) turned in a 7.9 percent rise in 2007 core profit on Friday, hit by a weaker dollar, and said it expected growth this year.

The company, whose brands include Armani, Dior and Gucci, said it would propose a 'considerable' dividend rise after a net profit figure of 51 million euros ($76 million), up 36.2 percent.

It said preliminary core profit, or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, was 175 million euros, based on a euro/U.S. dollar rate of 1.37.

It had set a target of 180 million euros for core profit in July, based on a 1.35 exchange rate.

Safilo said the development of the retail channel, the greater incidence of advertising costs related to the launch of new brands and a focus on house brands had affected the figure.

It said it expected core profit to "settle" at about 15 percent of sales this year, driven by a "good" gross profit performance thanks to changes in product development, a focus on best-selling items and a greater contribution from retail.

Sales this year would rise 4 percent to 5 percent at an average euro/U.S. dollar exchange rate for the whole year of 1.47. At constant exchange rates, it said sales would rise by 7 percent to 8 percent.

"We operate in a very competitive sector and in a complex economic environment, but we believe that this context can represent an opportunity," Chairman Vittorio Tabacchi said in a statement.

"We will continue to focus considerable attention on our wholesale business which remains key, and for which important development projects have and will be undertaken in order to develop in a more decisive way new markets."