Group pre-tax profit (PTP) at John Keells Holdings (JKH) of Rs. 3.45 billion for the quarter and Rs. 4.98 billion for the first six months of the financial year 2010/2011, up sharply by 281 % and 167 % respectively over the previous year, was helped by gains from the sale of stakes in Asian Hotels and Properties PLC (AHPL) and John Keells Hotels PLC (KHL), the company said this week.
Susantha Ratnayake |
It said revenues at Rs. 13.97 billion and Rs. 26.89 billion in the second quarter and the first half of 2010/201, 1were 24 % and 26 % above the Rs. 11.23 billion and Rs. 21.30 billion recorded in the corresponding periods in the previous year. JKH Chairman Susantha Ratnayake in his statement to shareholders said that in the transportation sector while the SAGT performed to expectations, the airlines and logistics business units, in particular, performed significantly above the corresponding period in the previous year.
The bunkering business, whilst maintaining market leadership,was adversely affected by volatile world oil prices during the quarter.
In the leisure sector – which is doing well across many companies – the improved performance was mainly due to better results achieved by both the Sri Lankan resorts and JKH city hotels - Cinnamon Grand and Cinnamon Lakeside.
Coral Gardens has been closed for a complete refurbishment and is scheduled to be re-opened as Chaaya Tranz in Winter 2011/12. The construction of the new hotel in Beruwela – Chaaya Bey –is progressing as planned. The Chaaya Lagoon Hakuraa Huraa in the Maldives has been operational since September 2010 after the completion of its refurbishment. “During the quarter, we exited the loss making Cinnamon Alidhoo and acquired the head lease of Chaaya Island, Dhonveli, which have and will substantially improve the profitability of the Maldivian resorts,” Mr Ratnayake said.
In the property sector, the company officially launched a 475 apartment development on Union Place in the heart of Colombo and market surveys indicate encouraging interest from potential buyers and expressions of interest have already been received for over 50 % of the units. In the consumer foods and retail sector, the soft drinks, ice creams and processed meats businesses saw strong volume growth while the supermarket business had a significantly better quarter on the back of higher same store sales and better margins. |
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