Aitken Spence 1Q pre-tax profit up 2% to Rs. 937 m

Thursday, 8 August 2013 00:26 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Diversified blue-chip Aitken Spence Plc yesterday reported a pre-tax profit of Rs. 937 m for the first quarter, a growth of 2.1%, over the previous year, while the Group’s profit attributable to shareholders of the parent grew by 4.1% to Rs. 667 m.

The Company reported that the revenue for the first quarter declined by 11.3% to Rs. 7.64 b, while earnings per share for the quarter stood at Rs. 1.64, an increase of 4.1% over the corresponding period in the previous year. The tourism sector, which includes hotels in Sri Lanka, the Maldives, India and Oman as well as the leading destination management company in Sri Lanka reported healthy returns. Cargo Logistics and the Strategic Investments sectors reported a decline whilst the Services sector showed steady growth. Aitken Spence is among Sri Lanka’s leading and most respected corporate entities with operations in South Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the South Pacific. In Sri Lanka, it is an industry leader in hotels, travel, maritime services, logistics, power generation and printing, with a significant presence in plantations, financial services, insurance, information technology and apparel. Deputy Chairman and Managing Director J.M.S. Brito said: “We are pleased to report overall modest growth in profits for the quarter despite challenging environments in several of our key sectors. A strong performance from our geographically diversified tourism sector contributed strongly to the Group’s performance.” During the quarter, Aitken Spence PLC launched Empowering Sri Lanka First, an English and IT teaching program for children from its neighbouring communities as its flagship corporate community engagement initiative. The leading diversified conglomerate commenced the pilot phase of the English program benefiting 180 students in Dambulla, Ahungalla and Mawaramandiya in May. The eight-year old students follow a globally recognised British Council syllabus combined with accompanying teaching material delivered by local teachers who have completed British Council conducted teacher training.