KUCHING: Supermax Corporation Bhd (Supermax) announces its third quarter results for the financial year ending Dec 31, 2011 (3Q11), recording an improved performance in the reporting quarter compared with its preceding quarter.
Standley Thai
THe group’s revenue rose by 14.1 per cent, amounting to RM33.5 million while its profit after tax (PAT) rose by 36.4 per cent to RM8.2 million compared with last quarter’s performance.
“The much improved performance in the current quarter was achieved on the back of increased sales for both natural rubber and nitrile latex gloves. Overall, profit margins rose from 11.2 per cent to 11.4 per cent as the group benefited from lower natural rubber latex prices,” commented Supermax executive chairman and group managing director Datuk Seri Stanley Thai.
“It also benefited from a relatively stable US dollar to ringgit exchanged rate environment unlike in previous quarters which saw high volatility,” he added.
He further said that Supermax had been actively adjusting selling prices to mitigate the impact of highly volatile raw material prices as well as the unfavourable foreign exchange rates.
Thai added, “While we are increasing production output of nitrile gloves, we have been maintaining our manufacturing margins at between 11 per cent and 15 per cent to be in line with global prices, especially gloves from China. This is in line with our objective to be globally competitive.”
Supermax was confident of achieving a full year PAT of between RM100 million and RM120 million for the financial year 2011.
“Demand for the industry remained resilient. We are expanding to step up production lines for additional capacity to reduce delivery lead time and imrpove profitability through higher efficiency and better productivity,” he pointed out.
On the production front, Supermax is in an advanced stage of expanding its sergical glove capacity 10-fold. The new lines were expected to be ready by year-end and this would enable the group to tap this highly lucrative market.
The new capacity would be housed in one of its rebuilt plants and was expected to contribute US$10.1 million in additional profits to the group next year.
Besides surgical gloves, the group was also moving ahead in its plans to build plants number 10 and 11 over the next two years in Meru, Kland.
“Works are also ongoing to refurbish the older plants by replacing old lines with newer and more efficient lines,” it said.
The board of directors had declared an interim dividend of six per cent tax exempt amounting to RM10.2 million to be paid on Dec 8, 2011 in respect of the financial year ending Dec 31, 2011.