Gwyneth Yeo

 

SINGAPORE (Nov 10): Wilmar International, the agribusiness group, reported record earnings of US$392.2 million ($549.8 million) for 3QFY16, a 46.6% increase over the earnings of US$267.6 million in 3QFY15.

The improved earnings were also driven by good performance from the Tropical Oils segment and the Oilseeds and Grains segment which saw a significant recovery from 2QFY16.

Core net profit grew 10% to US$384.9 million from US$350.7 million a year ago.

Share of results of joint ventures & associates rose by 97.2% to US$28.6 million, due to the improved contributions from its investments in China, Africa and Ukraine.

Wilmar also posted a gain of US$7.4 million arising from mark-to-market gains on its investment securities, which were partially offset by foreign exchange losses recognised on intercompany loans. Excluding these non-operating items, the group&rsquo s core earnings rose 9.8% to US$384.9 million.

The Tropical Oils segment posted an 81% increase in pretax profit to US$169.3 million, despite lower production volumes, as crude palm oil prices improved during the quarter.

Oilseeds and Grains&rsquo pretax profits rose marginally to US$248.1 million, while Sugar&rsquo s pretax profits fell 21% to US$86.4 million following the continued disruption in harvesting due to wet weather in Australia and the poorer results from the merchandising business.

For the quarter to Sept, revenue rose 4.1% to US$11.1 billion, on the back of higher commodity prices.

Selling and distribution expenses fell 10.6% to US$439.6 million and administrative expenses fell 8.5% to US$148.6 million.

Wilmar&rsquo s Chairman and CEO, Kuok Khoon Hong, said that the group&rsquo s performance is expected to be &ldquo satisfactory&rdquo for the rest of the year, while it continues &ldquo to execute on its stated growth strategy, with emphasis on its downstream businesses and focusing on high growth markets in Asia and Africa&rdquo .

Shares in Wilmar closed 3 cents higher at $3.35 on Wednesday.