Gold Peak's Singapore-Listed GP Batteries Interim Turnover Grows by 9.1%.HONG KONG Hong Kong (hŏng kŏng), Mandarin Xianggang, special administrative region of China, formerly a British crown colony (2005 est. pop. 6,899,000), land area 422 sq mi (1,092 sq km), adjacent to Guangdong prov. -- Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Limited's (SEHK SEHK See: Stock Exchange of Hong Kong code: 40) Singapore-listed member company, GP Batteries International Limited, announces its unaudited consolidated interim results for the months ended September 30, 2004.
Financial highlights of Singapore-listed GP Batteries:
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For the 3 months ended Sept 30
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Q2 Q2 % of
2004 2003 change
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Turnover S$ 220.8M S$ 214.0M + 3.2%
(HK$1,012.9M) (HK$959.2M)
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Profit attributable S$ 7.3M S$ 12.6M - 41.7%
to shareholders (HK$33.6M) (HK$56.3M)
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For the 6 months ended Sept 30
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2004 2003 % of
Interim Interim change
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Turnover S$ 440.3M S$ 403.6M + 9.1%
(HK$2,022.3M) (HK$1,797.1M)
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Profit attributable S$ 20.0M S$23.9M - 16.6%
to shareholders (HK$91.7M) (HK$106.5M)
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figures in brackets are for reference only
GP Batteries is 49.1%-owned by the Singapore-listed GP Industries Limited which is an 87.2% subsidiary of Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Limited (SEHK code: 40). Prospects of GP Batteries Commenting on GP Batteries' prospects, Andrew Ng, Chairman and Chief Executive of GP Batteries, said, "Sales are expected to remain steady but operating margin Operating Margin A ratio used to measure a company's pricing strategy and operating efficiency. Calculated by: will be under pressure as raw material prices are expected to stay high and volatile. Competition in the Lithium Ion A rechargeable battery technology introduced in 1991 that provides greater charge per pound than nickel metal hydride. In 1993, Toshiba introduced the first notebook in the U.S. with a Li-ion battery. market is expected to be keener as prices continue to erode Erode (ĕrōd`), city (1991 urban agglomeration pop. 361,755), Tamil Nadu state, S India, on the Kaveri River. The city is located in a cotton-growing region, and its industries include cotton ginning and the manufacture of transport equipment. even as costs are going up as a result of the over supply situation. The Cadmium cadmium (kăd`mēəm) [from cadmia, Lat. for calamine, with which cadmium is found associated], metallic chemical element; symbol Cd; at. no. 48; at. wt. 112.41; m.p. 321°C;; b.p. 765°C;; sp. gr. 8. issue in our two Huizhou factories still needs time to be resolved and more expenses are expected to be incurred. However, it is difficult to quantify the total amount that will be involved. GP Batteries expects that the operating environment In computing, an operating environment is the environment in which users run programs, whether in a command line interface, such as in MS-DOS or the Unix shell, or in a graphical user interface, such as in the Macintosh operating system. to remain difficult for the rest of the current fiscal year. The Management of GP Batteries remains positive about the medium and long-term prospects of GP Batteries Group." Ng is Vice Chairman of Gold Peak. Production of Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) A rechargeable battery technology that has approximately 30-50% more charge per pound than nickel cadmium. Introduced in the early 1990s, it uses nickel and metal hydride plates with potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte. batteries will continue to increase while that for Nickel Cadmium (NiCd) A rechargeable battery technology that is widely used for portable hand tools. It uses a nickel and cadmium plate and potassium hydroxide as the electrolyte. Originally invented in Sweden in 1899, it became popular in the 1950s after a sealed version was developed. is expected to be further reduced. GP Batteries will further streamline its operations to strengthen cost competitiveness and continue to promote its GP brand name and capitalise on its strong worldwide distribution network and to look for investment opportunities. Business Review of GP Batteries Turnover increased mainly due to the continued increase in sales of Nickel Metal Hydride and Alkaline primary cylindrical cyl·in·dri·cal adj. Of, relating to, or having the shape of a cylinder, especially of a circular cylinder. batteries. This was however negated by the drop in turnover of Nickel Cadmium batteries. Although total sales for Lithium Ion batteries rose, the market has become increasingly competitive since the beginning of the second quarter due to surplus supply. Gross profit margin Gross profit margin Gross profit divided by sales, which is equal to each sales dollar left over after paying for the cost of goods sold. gross profit margin A measure calculated by dividing gross profit by net sales. decreased mainly due to raw material costs, especially Nickel and Cobalt, continued to remain at high levels as compared to last year and exceptional expenses incurred in relation to the Cadmium issue in our two plants in Huizhou, China. GP Batteries has paid S$2.5 million during the quarter for the compensation, medical and hospital expenses for those workers affected. Distribution expenses for the three months ended September 30, 2004 were S$13.2 million, a decrease of 11.1% over the corresponding quarter of last year. This was mainly due to less advertising and promotion expenses incurred during the period. As a result of better cost control, profit before share of results of associates decreased by only S$3.6 million despite the decrease in gross profit by S$7.9 million for the quarter ended September 30, 2004 compared to the previous corresponding period. The share of results of associates for the three months and six months ended September 30, 2004 was S$1.1 million and S$3.2 million respectively, a decrease of 56.8% and 35.0% over the corresponding period of last year. This was mainly due to the inclusion of the pre-operating loss of the 50% owned associate, Danionics Asia Limited. The profit attributable to the minority shareholders for the three months and six months ended September 30, 2004 increased by S$1.1 million and S$1.5 million respectively, mainly as a result of the increase in profit of Zhongyin Ningbo Battery Co Ltd. Relocation of the Danionics Lithium Polymer A rechargeable battery technology introduced in the late 1990s that stores less energy per pound than lithium ion, but is more flexible. Lithium polymer uses a gelatinous electrolyte rather than liquid. facility in Denmark to China has been delayed because of difficulties experienced by the civil contractors during the recent austerity measures implemented by the government in China to cool down the economy. The JV factory in Ningbo, China with Sanyo to produce primary Lithium batteries Lithium batteries are primary batteries that have lithium metal or lithium compounds as an anode. Depending on the design and chemical compounds used lithium cells can produce voltages from 1.5V to about 3V, twice the voltage of an ordinary zinc-carbon battery or alkaline cell. is under construction and expected to be operational in 2005 as scheduled. Background information on Gold Peak: Gold Peak Group is an Asian multinational group which owns a diversified portfolio of high-quality industrial investments via its major industrial investment vehicle, the Singapore-listed GP Industries Limited. Its Technology and Strategic Division is primarily engaged in the development of new product technologies and strategic investments. In the industrial sector, the Group has established a leadership position in Asia for most of its product categories including GP Batteries and CLIPSAL electrical installation products. The parent company, Gold Peak Industries (Holdings) Limited, was established in 1964 and has been listed in Hong Kong since 1984. Currently, Gold Peak holds an 87.2%(a) interest in GP Industries while GP Industries holds a 65.2%(a) interest in CIH CIH Chartered Institute of Housing (UK) CIH Certified Industrial Hygienist (ABIH) CIH Constant Image Height CIH Camshaft in Head (engine) CIH Chen Ing-Hau Limited ("CIHL") and a 49.1%(a) interest in GP Batteries. GP Industries, GP Batteries and CIHL are listed in Singapore. Gold Peak Group has manufacturing, research & development, marketing and distribution operations in more than ten countries around the world. Gold Peak's ordinary shares are listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (Traditional Chinese: 香港交易所, also 港交所; abbreviated as HKEX; HKSE: 0388 ) is the stock exchange of Hong Kong. . Ordinary share information on Gold Peak may be accessed on the Reuters Equity 2000 service under the symbol 0040 HK and on Bloomberg under the symbol 40 HK. Gold Peak ADRs, each equal to ten ordinary shares, trade on the NASD NASD See: National Association of Securities Dealers NASD See National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD). OTC Bulletin Board OTC Bulletin Board An electronic quotation listing of the bid and asked prices of OTC stocks that do not meet the requirements to be listed on the NASDAQ stock-listing system. under the symbol GPINY. ((a) shareholding % as at Nov 5, 2004) For more information on Gold Peak or GP Batteries, please visit our website at: www.goldpeak.com or www.gpbatteries.com.sg |
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