Genting Plantations Q2 earnings down 42% to RM40m

PETALING JAYA: Genting Plantations Bhd’s second quarter net profit ended June 30, 2015, dropped 42.2% to RM40.03 million, from RM69.23 million in the previous corresponding quarter.

Revenue also fell 15.2% to RM305.73 million, compared with RM360.51 million a year ago, due to lower contributions from its local plantation and property segments, which were affected by lower palm products selling prices and softer property sales.

Its earnings per share was at 12.01 sen, down 46% from the same period last year.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia yesterday, the group said the palm products selling prices were lower in the first half of the year, compared with the same period last year, amid softer demand for palm oil from some major importing countries.

Commenting on its prospects, the group said the palm product prices and crop production trends from Malaysia and Indonesia are among factors that will have a bearing on the group’s performance for the second half of the year.

“In this connection, movements in the ringgit and Indonesian rupiah, developments related to the onset of El Nino and the progress of an expected bumper global soybean production in the upcoming season, may potentially influence palm oil prices in the near to medium term,” it added.

The counter closed higher 0.11% or1 sen at RM8.92, with some 475,600 shares traded.