Daily news - 9 Jul

Ezra Holdings Q3 net rises 8% to US$18.8m
Ezra Holdings posted an 8 per cent rise in net profit to US$18.8 million for its financial third quarter ended May 31, from US$17.4 million a year ago, as turnover rose 9 per cent to US$59.9 million. On a nine-month basis, net profit plunged to US$43 million from the previous corresponding period's US$168.7 million, the reason being that the latter included a net gain of US$136.3 million from the group's partial divestment of its construction and production arm, EOC Ltd. Excluding the divestment item, nine-month net profit from ongoing activities rose to US$43 million from US$32.4 million as group turnover jumped 58 per cent to US$236.0 million, as all its three divisions performed well. The offshore support services (OSS) and marine divisions both enjoyed a strong pickup in revenue, while the energy services division contributed US$46.1 million to overall turnover. In addition, both the OSS and marine businesses were able to achieve margin gains. The OSS division, which made up 60 per cent of turnover for the first nine months, saw improved sales, owing to the full nine-month contribution from Ezra's various new assets progressively coming onstream. Meanwhile, the marine division benefited from increased procurement, equipment supply and engineering activities in Vietnam.

Source: Kim Eng