SINGAPORE: Singapore Post, a postal and e-commerce logistics company, said Tuesday its net profit in the second quarter fell 9.5% from a year earlier, due to absence of a one-off gain recorded in the year-ago period.
Net profit for the quarter ended Sep. 30 totaled S$28.47 million ($20.91 million), down from S$31.44 million a year earlier, SingPost said in an exchange filing. Revenue in the second quarter was up 10.2% to S$354.69 million from S$321.73 million in the year-ago quarter, led by growth in the postal and logistics segments. The company said quarterly postal and logistics revenue increased 16.9% and 7.6%, respectively, while eCommerce revenue was marginally lower.
In the previous year period, the company’s bottom line was boosted by a one-off gain from the dilution of interest in an associated company, it said. Excluding such exceptional items, underlying net profit rose 1.9% on stronger performance by postal and eCommerce segments, as well as associates and joint ventures. For the second quarter, the board of directors declared an interim dividend of 0.5 Singapore cent per ordinary share to be paid on Dec. 8, it added.
“Capital expenditure for FY2017/18 is expected to be lower than FY2016/17, as the majority of development projects had been completed,” it said.
“Decline in domestic letter mail volumes is expected to continue,” the company said. “The International mail transhipment market remains highly competitive, and margins are relatively low. With the shift in mix towards lower margin International mail, blended postal margin is expected to decline.”
