A drop in commodity prices and a weaker Indonesian rupiah took a toll on Jardine Cycle & Carriage's second-quarter showing.
Net profit plunged by 15 per cent to US$183.7 million (S$252.5 million) this year. Revenue slid 13 per cent to US$4.2 billion. Earnings per share was 50.2 US cents, down from 58.76 US cents in the same quarter last year. Net asset value per share was US$12.13 as at June 30, down from US$12.63 as at Dec 31, last year.
The slow economy in Indonesia, where the rupiah is weak, hurt the group's Astra International unit heavily.
Jardine Cycle & Carriage owns a majority stake in Astra, South-east Asia's largest automotive group.
Gloomy sentiment lowered consumer demand for cars, motorcycles and automotive parts in a crowded car sector, even as palm oil sales went down and a drop in coal production cut back on revenue from mining subsidiaries.
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AT A GLANCE
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GROSS REVENUE
US$4.22 billion (-13%)
NET PROFIT
US$183.7 million (-15%)
DIVIDEND PER SHARE
18 US cents (unchanged)
However, the group's poor performance in Indonesia was partly offset by strong motor sales in Vietnam and Malaysia.
An increase in Singapore's vehicle quota also fed demand and gave Jardine Cycle & Carriage's earnings a boost.
In April, the company acquired a 24.9 per cent interest in Thai cement manufacturer Siam City Cement Public Company. The US$615 million purchase brought Jardine Cycle & Carriage's net debt up from US$47 million at the end of last year to US$659 million as at June 30.
In a renounceable rights issue last month, US$749 million was raised by shareholders' purchase of new stock, and most of it went to repaying what was borrowed for the Siam City Cement investment. Siam City Cement and Vietnam's Refrigeration Electrical Engineering Corporation together have contributed US$12 million to the group.
For the six months ended June 30, Jardine Cycle & Carriage's net profit fell 16 per cent to US$362 million while revenue slid 13 per cent to US$8.24 billion.
Group chairman Ben Keswick said that Jardine Cycle & Carriage's businesses are in a good position once economic momentum picks up again, but admitted that the timing of a recovery is uncertain. An unchanged interim dividend of 18 US cents a share has been declared.
