CHARLTON, Mass., Apr. 5 -- FiberCore Inc., a manufacturer of optical fiber and preforms, has reported record sales of $12,126,000 for the year ended December 31, 1999. The company said sales increased 48 percent over 1998's results of $8,201,000, despite weaker market prices in the first half of 1999 and a lower exchange rate of the US dollar to the Euro. Sales for the fourth quarter of 1999 totaled $4,276,000, rising 74 percent over the $2,458,000 recorded in the fourth quarter of the prior year. FiberCore credited new customers in the North American market with the rise in sales; the company attributed its fourth-quarter growth to an increase in market demand and the resulting higher prices. Sales volume for the year increased more than 123 percent over 1998's levels.