PPA net earnings up 20.5% to P5.58 B as of end-July

Net earnings of the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) rose by more than a fifth in the first seven months of the year from a year ago on the back of higher revenues.

Data from the PPA showed net income reached P5.58 billion as of end-July, up 20.5 percent from P4.63 billion in the same period last year.

PPA’s net income for the seven-month period is also 45.6 percent higher than the P3.83 billion target for the period.

PPA general manager Jay Daniel Santiago attributed the latest net earnings performance to growth in revenues and lowering of expenditures.

“The sustained positive outcome in shipping and trade at the ports, resulting from the country’s upbeat economic and business atmosphere and heightened domestic demand, continue to spark progression in PPA’s operational and financial performance,” he said.

Revenue for the January to July period climbed 7.6 percent to P8.68 billion this year from P8.07 billion in the same period in the previous year.

PPA’s revenue is likewise higher by 5.1 percent compared to the P8.26 billion target for the seven-month period.

The bulk of the revenues came from remittances from port operators International Container Terminal Services Inc., Asian Terminals Inc., as well as cargohandling fees and port dues.

Fund management income (FMI) from investments made on treasury bonds and other temporary or short-term investments placed with banks such as the Philippine Veterans Bank and Land Bank of the Philippines, also grew 34.7 percent to P60.75 million as of end-July from P45.09 million a year ago.

Compared to the P32.09 million FMI target for the seven-month period, the actual figure is higher by 89.3 percent.

Total expenditures of the PPA, meanwhile, dropped 10 percent to P3.09 billion in the January to July period this year from last year’s P3.44 billion. Earlier, the PPA said it revised the financial outlook for the year to modest growth from an initial expectation of flat growth due to strong economic activity, as well as higher cargo volume handled at the ports.