PRESS RELEASE
CASH Announces 2004 Interim Results
(Hong Kong, 18 August 2004) - Celestial Asia Securities Holdings Limited (“CASH” or
together with its subsidiaries, the “Group”) [HKSE: 1049] today announces its unaudited
interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2004.
During the period under review, the Group recorded a 20.3% increase in turnover to
HK$535.3 million as compared with the same period last year. Net loss attributable to
shareholders was HK$35.9 million during the period. The net loss was mainly attributable
to the price and margin pressure in the furniture and household market, and the costs of
developing the Group’s global distribution network.
With the efforts paid in the past years, the Group’s financial services business – CASH
Financial Services Group Limited (“CFSG”), turned around to make a net profit attributable
to shareholders of HK$26.1 million during the period. “Such results reflected that our efforts
in diversifying our product offerings started to bear fruits,” continued Mr. Kwan.
By
leveraging on the cross-selling synergies, CFSG started its wealth management business to
complement existing financial services efforts. With now a strengthened capital base, CFSG
will continue to maintain its cost leadership so as to capture future market opportunities.
Nonetheless, the Group’s furniture and household retailing business – Pricerite Group
Limited (“Pricerite”), suffered from a slow recovery in the furniture and household sector
during the first half of 2004, as evidenced in the yearlong decline in Consumer Price Index in
durable goods items, and a sluggish growth in sales in furniture market during the period.
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“Despite these difficulties, we continued to strengthen Pricerite’s business edges with an aim
to develop sustainable long-term growth,” said Mr. Bankee Kwan, Chairman and CEO of
CASH. During the period, Pricerite started to revamp its merchandise and continued to invest
in its management information system to facilitate management decision-making. For its
international business, Pricerite secured a supply chain management contract with a Saudi
investment Group, ARTAR, and a new retail store is expected to be opened in Riyadh in June
2005. The fourth Shenzhen retail outlet was opened with satisfactory progress during the
period, and the Guangzhou store will be relocated to Tian He region soon. The Shanghai
outlet is planned to open upon receiving the approval of the CEPA license, which is expected
to be obtained within the year.
The Group’s IT business - Halo Group Limited (“Halo”), and brand management business Cosmos Global Limited (“CGL”), are in satisfactory progress in their respective markets.
During the period, Pricerite, CGL and Halo started to develop international trading and
supply chain management with European counterparts through joint initiatives.
“We are confident that the Group will continue to capitalize on the recovering global and
domestic economies. We expect to enjoy a long-term growth by developing our international
business, re-engineering our furniture and household business, and further expanding our
financial services business. By leveraging on internal synergies, we are in the best position to
capture market opportunities therearise,” concluded Mr. Kwan.
The Group’s financials remained healthy during the period under review. The Group’s
liquidity ratio remained healthy at 1.2 times on 30 June 2004, virtually unchanged from 31
December 2003. The Group’s total bank borrowings on 30 June 2004 slightly increased to
HK$342.3 million from HK$341.9 million on 31 December 2003. On 30 June 2004, the cash
and bank balances of the Group were HK$632.7 million, as compared to HK$664.5 million
on 31 December 2003.
Attachment: Unaudited consolidated results for the six months ended 30 June 2004
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About Celestial Asia Securities Holdings Limited
CASH is a Hong Kong based multi-faceted service conglomerate that focuses on addressing
the modern consumer needs in investment, finance, home improvement, and lifestyle products
and services. CASH controls two listed companies in Hong Kong - CASH Financial Services
Group [GEM: 8122] and Pricerite Group [SEHK: 996]. Complementing the recurring income
from the services business is its high growth strategic investments in IT solutions. Additional
information is available at www.cash.com.hk.
- END The unaudited consolidated results of the Group for the six months ended 30 June 2004
together with the comparative figures for the last corresponding period are as follows:
Unaudited
six months ended 30 June
2003
2004
HK$’000
HK$’000
Turnover
Other operating income
Cost of sales
Salaries, allowances and commission
Other operating, administrative and selling expenses
Depreciation and amortisation
Finance costs
Write back of bad and doubtful debts
Impairment loss recognised in respect of property and equipment
535,274
(271,459)
(121,565)
(143,980)
(26,550)
(3,948)
3,013
-
445,112
26,500
(248,871)
(91,536)
(138,461)
(28,329)
(1,797)
(1,580)
Loss before taxation
Taxation charge
(29,215)
(250)
(38,962)
-
Loss before minority interests
Minority interests
(29,465)
(6,391)
(38,962)
6,483
Net loss attributable to shareholders
(35,856)
(32,479)
(9.8) cents
(10.3) cents
(9.8) cents
(10.3) cents
Loss per share
- Basic
- Diluted
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