Singapore Post Ltd : SingPost Posts Net Profit of S$41.6M for Q3

01/30/2012 | 05:46am
For immediate release

SingPost Group's unaudited results

for the third quarter and nine months ended 31 December 2011

SingPost posts net profit of S$41.6M for Q3

- Dividend remains at 1.25cts per share

Singapore, 30 January 2012 - Singapore Post Limited ("SingPost") today announced its unaudited results for the third quarter and nine months ended 31 December 2011. Below are some highlights:

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

GROUP RESULTS

Revenue

Rental & Property- Related Income

Total Expenses

Net Profit

Underlying Net

Profit

Net Cash from

Operating Activities

Earnings per Share

Investing for growth

Group revenue saw a marginal increase to S$149.4 million in the third quarter of FY2011/12 against the backdrop of a slowing economy.
Logistics revenue rose by 5.2% to S$57.0 million with the growth in Speedpost business, e- fulfilment activities in Quantium Solutions and vPOST shipping business. The Retail segment posted an increase in revenue of 5.1% to S$17.6 million as higher contributions from retail products and online store Clout Shoppe offset the drop in agency services and financial services. Mail revenue dipped 3.4% to S$98.0 million due to declines in domestic mail and international mail volumes.
Rental and property-related income grew 1.1% to S$10.7 million, as a result of higher rental income from Singapore Post Centre.
Total expenses for the Group rose by 3.6% to S$114.5 million. Approximately S$2.7 million was for upgrading of talent, IT systems and operations to drive future revenues. Labour and related expenses were higher as a result of the investments in group capabilities and also from increases in salaries and contract labour costs in the tight labour market.
Net profit amounted to S$41.6 million, a decline of 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Excluding one-off items, the Group's underlying net profit was S$38.9 million, a decrease of 5.0%.

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Dr Wolfgang Baier, Group Chief Executive Officer of SingPost, said: "Globally, the postal industry has been struggling in the face of industry-specific challenges and now, it has become even more challenging with the weakening economy. What's in our favour is our strong foundation which puts us in a good position to invest for growth. Over the past months, we have been investing in the necessary capabilities and resources to drive our diversification and regionalisation efforts. We are mindful that, even as we continue to invest for growth, cost management will remain a key focus. We are implementing cost management initiatives and focusing on spending only in areas that will drive our growth efforts."

Building a stronger SingPost with five business pillars

Added Dr Baier: "We have implemented corporate-wide initiatives to build a stronger SingPost based on five business pillars namely, mail, digital services, logistics, e-commerce and retail and financial services."
SingPost has been working on its digital mailbox solution to provide customers another option for receipt of their mail. It has also been growing other digital services as it transforms its subsidiary Datapost to become a regional business outsourcing player. SingPost had recently announced its acquisition of Novation, a security printing and transactional mail provider in Hong Kong. In Logistics, SingPost has been leveraging its recent investments in logistics companies in the region, as well as its regional platform in Quantium Solutions, in order to strengthen the Group's logistics network in Asia Pacific. It is pursuing opportunities in e-commerce fulfilment while expanding its vPOST reach in the region. On the retail front, SingPost continues to expand its offerings including financial products and services and will start to test mobile offerings soon.

Remaining committed to all stakeholders

Dr Baier added: "Our stakeholders' interests are foremost in our mind. We want to create long-term value for our shareholders. Even as SingPost is investing for the future, our healthy fundamentals and cash flows give us confidence that we are able to sustain the dividend payout to our shareholders. At the same time, we are also investing to improve service quality and to stay relevant to our customers in Singapore."
SingPost had in November 2011 invested in a multi-purpose sorting machine that is able to process between 10,000 and 15,000 packages in an hour, as it adapts to the changing mail profile. It has also been upgrading its track and trace capability and other IT systems to provide better customer service. It has expanded its airmail transit centre facility at the airport leading to enhanced processing time and better service during the year-end peak.
Customers have also been able to enjoy greater convenience with SingPost's lastest service offerings and collaborations. These include being able to perform simple banking transactions and exchanging new notes at its post offices, being able to drop off Speedpost EMS articles at 7-Eleven outlets and enjoying a faster and enhanced delivery for eBay customers sending packages to USA through the new ePAC service.

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Interim quarterly dividend of 1.25 cents per share

Net cash from operating activities was higher at S$125.4 million, compared to S$120.3 million in the 9-month period last year.
The Board of Directors has declared an interim quarterly dividend of 1.25 cents per ordinary share (tax exempt one-tier) payable on 29 February 2012.

End

About Singapore Post Limited

(Reg. No. 199201623M)

Singapore Post Limited (SingPost) is a leading provider of mail, logistics and retail solutions in

Singapore and the Asia Pacific region.

It is the designated Public Postal Licensee (PPL) for Singapore providing domestic and international postal services as well as end-to-end mail solutions such as data printing, letter-shopping, delivery and mailroom management.

As a logistics provider, SingPost offers domestic and international door-to-door delivery services, including express delivery (Speedpost) along with warehousing, fulfilment and distribution services.

SingPost owns one of the largest retail distribution networks in Singapore with its extensive tri-channel network of over 60 post offices, 300-odd Self-service Automated Machines (SAM) and the online shopping and shipping portal vPOST.

SingPost was listed on the Main Board of the SGX-ST on 13 May 2003. The company has won many awards and accolades. It is the only postal company in the world to have won the Express Mail Service (EMS) Cooperative Certification Gold Level Award by the Universal Postal Union for its Speedpost Worldwide Courier Service for nine consecutive years since 2001. It was a runner-up in the "Most Transparent Company Award" at the SIAS Investors' Choice Awards 2010. For further information, please visit www.singpost.com.

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For general information on SingPost, call 1605 toll-free or visit www.singpost.com

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