Agri-food company Japfa UD2 has swung back into profit, with patmi of US$12.4 million ($16.93 million) for 1QFY2024 ended March 31, compared to a net loss attributable to owners of some US$43.0 million this time last year.
Core patmi without foreign exchange impact would have been higher at US$13.4 million, while ebitda surged more than 4,000% y-o-y to US$99.2 million during the quarter, up from just US$2.3 million in 1QFY2023 last year.
According to the company, key catalysts for this improvement were feed, which consistently delivered profits with stable margins across its major markets; higher poultry and swine selling prices during Ramadhan in Indonesia and Tết in Vietnam, which revitalised demand; and streamlining initiatives introduced in early 2023, which have proven effective in lowering production costs across poultry and swine operations in Vietnam.
Tan Yong Nang, chief executive officer of Japfa, says the positive results for 1QFY202 are encouraging. “Despite cost-of-living pressures, we made the most of increased demand during Ramadhan in Indonesia and Tết in Vietnam, leveraging higher selling prices of both poultry and swine. Also, the y-o-y improvement in performance underscores the effectiveness of our streamlining initiatives in reducing production costs, particularly in our poultry and swine operations in Vietnam.”
While the current results are promising, Japfa’s commitment to prudent management remains steadfast, says Tan on April 30, “especially given the uncertain global conditions”. “We remain focused on being one of the lowest-cost producers of animal proteins in Asia.”
Shares in Japfa closed 1 cent lower, or 3.23% down, at 30 cents on April 30.
