Richina pleased with quarter’s performance

Former New Zealand investment company Richina Pacific said yesterday it had achieved a solid performance during the first quarter of 2005.

Chairman John Walker told the company's annual meeting in Auckland that Richina had generated a "modest" profit of US$138,000 ($191,240) for the first quarter, compared with a loss of more than US$800,000 for the same period last year.

He said the company's revenues had grown by "an impressive" 42 per cent from US$76 million in the first quarter of 2004 to US$107 million in the first quarter of this year.

The results were achieved in what was traditionally the most difficult quarter for the company.

Richina Pacific has three main businesses: Shanghai Richina Leather, Mainzeal Construction and Development here in New Zealand, and the Blue Zoo aquarium in Beijing.

In March, Richina reported a 228 per cent rise in December-year profit of US$8.18 million and declared a dividend of 2c a share, its first payout for six years.

The rise in profit was helped by the company's acquisition of a 90 per cent controlling interest in its former joint venture partner, Shanghai Leather.

Walker said the acquisition had "fundamentally changed the dynamics and profile" of the company.

Richina had moved to quarterly financial reporting in line with the rules of the Singapore stock exchange where it plans to move its primary listing.

But Walker said Richina's board had decided to delay its move to Singapore for the time being to allow the company "to focus full attention on consolidating our greatly expanded asset base and on building our organisational structures and the management teams to effectively manage and develop these assets".

He said the move to a Singapore listing would likely be co-ordinated with its plan to raise capital to pay for the development of its Chinese assets.

But the company had appointed a Singapore-resident independent director, Suet Fern Lee, as required by Singapore stock-exchange listing rules.

- NZPA