Thursday, July 28, 2011

JKH, USAID to set up Rs.400 mn cold chain

John Keells Logistics and USAID, in partnership have jointly committed an investment of more than Rs.400 million to implement a cold chain for agricultural and fisheries products in the North and East of Sri Lanka, the recent financials of John Keells Holdings (JKH) outlines.

In the latest quarterly results as of 30 June 2011 of the JKH it further notes that the company’s transportation sector profit before tax was a decrease of 7% over the first three months of financial year 2010/2011due to the translation impact arising from a stronger Sri Lankan Rupee.

However the financials notes that the South Asia gateway Terminals (SAGT) has ordered two new super post panamax cranes to be delivered in the fourth quarter which will further enhance its capability to handle the larger modern vessels, which in turn will increase productivity and capacity.

As per financials, JKH  profit attributable to Equity Holders for the quarter had risen to Rs. 1.37 billion (by 35%)  over Rs.1.01 billion in the previous year.

The Leisure industry of the group has recorded a significant improvement while the Colombo city hotels had seen a strong growth. Maldivian resort hotel sector had also seen an improved performance compared to the loss it had made in the first quarter of last year.

The rebranding and repositioning of Cinnamon Lakeside, in September 2009, has resulted in the hotel winning the Presidential Award for the best 5 star hotel in the city.

 The Cinnamon Grand has been inducted into the Presidential “Hall of Fame” following three consecutive awards for the best 5 star city hotel.

Meanwhile the Property sector had recorded a Profit Before Tax (PBT) of Rs. 85 million for the quarter, a decrease of 41% over the corresponding period last year.

The financials stress that the cyclical nature of the revenue recognition of the property group’s projects is the main reason for the variance from the corresponding period in the previous year.

It also notes that ‘The Emperor’ project is scheduled for completion in September this year and the construction of the Rs. 7.8 billion apartment block, “OnThree20”, commenced in April this year, with over 65 per cent of the apartments sold off plan.

The recent sale of property in the city to Shangri-la and CATIC of China have

set a new benchmark for property prices in Colombo, and this has resulted in a significant enhancement of the value of JKH land bank in the city, the financials outline. The company also adds that during the quarter, JKH acquired a block of 6.5 acres in the suburbs of Colombo.

source - www.dailymirror.lk

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