Singapore Post (SingPost) has reported earnings of $16.7 million for the 2HFY2020/2021 ended March 31, 55.7% lower than earnings of $37.7 million in the 2HFY2019/2020.
This brings earnings for the FY2020/2021 to $47.6 million, 47.7% lower than earnings of $91.1 million in the FY2019/2020.
The lower earnings were mainly attributable to Covid-19 related disruptions, says the group.
Earnings per share (EPS) for the 2HFY2020/2021 and FY2020/2021 stood at 0.41 cent and 1.46 cents respectively on a fully diluted basis.
Revenue for the 2HFY2020/2021 improved by 4.3% y-o-y to $696.9 million largely due to the strong e-Commerce volume growth in SingPost’s Logistics and domestic Post and Parcel segments, and offset by the decline in the international Post and Parcel segment.
FY2020/2021 revenue grew by 6.9% y-o-y to $1.40 billion.
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Group profit on operating activities for the 2HFY2020/2021 and FY2020/2021 fell 36.9% y-o-y and 44.8% y-o-y to $39.5 million and $79.3 million respectively due to Covid-19-related disruptions, which especially impacted figures for the group’s international Post and Parcel segment.
In the Post & Parcel segment, SingPost’s domestic Post and Parcel saw e-commerce volume growth, despite a decline in volumes of letters and printed papers.
Volumes for its international Post and Parcel segment remain impacted by the constraints on air capacity out from Changi Airport.
The disruption to international air travel, which resulted in higher conveyance costs, also impacted margins for the international Post and Parcel segment.
Logistics performed well in the FY2020/2021 as revenue improved by 23.5% y-o-y.
Logistics entities Couriers Please, Quantium Solutions and SP eCommerce benefited from the increased adoption and rapid growth of e-Commerce activities in Asia-Pacific.
The group’s Property revenue fell 4.3% y-o-y in the FY2020/2021 mainly due to rental rebates extended to eligible tenants, as well as lower receipts from car-park and atrium sales.
Committed occupancy for the SingPost Centre Mall as at March 31 stood at 94.1%, due to the exit of a food and beverage tenant.
Part of the space has since been taken up and committed occupancy now stands at 96.0% as at April 20.
Other income stood 110.0% higher y-o-y for the FY2020/2021 at $9.7 million mainly due to foreign exchange translation differences.
Total exceptional losses in 2HFY2020/2021 amounted to $12 million which included the fair value loss on investment properties of $6.7 million, mainly due to the fair value loss of $6.8 million for SingPost retail mall as a result of lower income.
As at March 31, cash and cash equivalents stood at $501.2 million.
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Looking ahead, SingPost says its performance in certain business segments – including international Post and Parcel – will continue to be affected by the border controls and higher international conveyance costs out of Changi Airport.
Public trials for SingPost’s smart letterbox PostPal, has already begun in Clementi since December 2020.
The board has proposed a final dividend of 0.6 cent per share for the 2HFY2020/2021, bringing the annual dividend to 1.1 cents per share.
“It’s been more than a year since Covid-19 struck the world, and the operating environment for businesses across all industries has changed as a result. SingPost has not been spared from the huge challenges the pandemic presented in the last year,” says Paul Coutts, CEO of SingPost Group.
“Despite this, we delivered a resilient performance and remained profitable. More importantly, we have positioned SingPost for the rebound which will come in time. We continue to adapt as needed in order to execute on our longer-term strategy, forging ahead with our vision to be a leading eCommerce logistics provider,” he adds.
Shares in SingPost closed flat at 75.5 cents on May 5.
