Scoop has an Ethical Paywall
Work smarter with a Pro licence Learn More

Video | Agriculture | Confidence | Economy | Energy | Employment | Finance | Media | Property | RBNZ | Science | SOEs | Tax | Technology | Telecoms | Tourism | Transport | Search

 

South Port first-half profit climbs 19%

South Port first-half profit climbs 19% as fertiliser shipments bolsters cargo flows

By Paul McBeth

Feb. 7 (BusinessDesk) - South Port New Zealand, which operates the country's southern-most port, lifted first-half profit 19 percent as cargo volumes were bolstered by fertiliser shipments, and it anticipates bigger annual earnings.

Net profit rose to $4.9 million, or 18.7 cents per share, in the six months ended Dec. 31, from $4.1 million, or 15.7 cents, a year earlier, the Bluff-based company said in a statement. Revenue rose 13 percent to $17.5 million on a 14 percent increase in total cargo to 1.73 million tonnes. The gains were in bulk cargo with a 63,000-tonne increase in fertiliser volumes and a 49,000 tonne gain in log volumes.

"The receipt of bulk fertiliser cargoes was 'front-ended' this year by the customer and the expectations are that these volumes will ultimately realign closer to the projected budget by year end," chair Rex Chapman said. "Market conditions for logs are buoyant and export volumes are expected to remain consistent with some potential upside."

The board declared a fully imputed interim dividend of 7.5 cents per share payable on March 6, unchanged from a year earlier. The shares rose 2.5 percent to $6.11.

South Port expects annual earnings to be between $8.7 million and $8.9 million, up from $8.5 million a year earlier. If profit is in line with that forecast, the board expects to pay a similar dividend, the company said.

Chief executive Nigel Gear said containerised cargo volumes were down from a year earlier with fewer empty boxes being delivered to the port coinciding with an increase in containerised imports.

"Unusually dry conditions in the south has also seen an increase in both containerised supplementary feeds being delivered to the port and meat products being exported due to a shortage of feed creating earlier processing demands," Gear said.

(BusinessDesk)

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading

Are you getting our free newsletter?

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.

© Scoop Media

Advertisement - scroll to continue reading
 
 
 
Business Headlines | Sci-Tech Headlines

 
GenPro: General Practices Begin Issuing Clause 14 Notices

GenPro has been copied into a rising number of Clause 14 notices issued since the NZNO lodged its Primary Practice Pay Equity Claim against General Practice employers in December 2023.More

SPADA: Screen Industry Unites For Streaming Platform Regulation & Intellectual Property Protections

In an unprecedented international collaboration, representatives of screen producing organisations from around the world have released a joint statement.More

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Join Our Free Newsletter

Subscribe to Scoop’s 'The Catch Up' our free weekly newsletter sent to your inbox every Monday with stories from across our network.