SINGAPORE (Feb 7): Courts Asia, the retailer of electrical, IT and furniture products, reported a 24.4% rise in 3Q earnings to $5 million from $4 million a year ago.
The earnings growth was achieved despite an 8.6% drop in revenue to $187.2 million from a year ago, in line with the weaker retail environment.
Singapore revenue, which made up 66.8% of Courts Asia’s topline during the quarter, slid 12.3% mainly due to lower corporate sales for digital products and the unforeseen recall of the Samsung Note 7.
Revenue in Malaysia, which contributed to 29.3% of the group’s turnover, fell 5.9% in Malaysian Ringgit mainly due to the same reason.
The group’s Indonesian operations, which contributed just 3.9% to the group’s turnover, saw revenue in Rupiah double, mainly due to contributions from newly opened stores.
Group gross profit margins increased to 33.1% from 29.7% a year ago, mainly due to higher service charge income and higher merchandise margins.
Terence O'Connor, Courts Asia's chief executive officer, said the group's profitability in spite of a lacklustre retail environment underscored the sustainability of its cost savings initiatives and productivity measures and better gross profit margins.
But O'Connor expects the operating environment in its key markets to remain challenging in the near term, in line with macroeconomic pressures and a soft retail environment.
Shares of Courts Asia closed unchanged at 43.5 cents.
