PETALING JAYA: Datasonic Group Bhd
expects elevated market uncertainties to persist and global economies to experience a slowdown compared to the previous year.
Despite these headwinds, executive chairman Datuk Abu Hanifah Noordin believes that there are bright spots ahead for the information and communication technologies firm.
“The demand for passports has been strong since the reopening of international borders and we anticipate this trend to continue in the near future.
“We are committed to meeting this demand with timely and uninterrupted delivery as part of our ongoing contribution to national security,” he said in the company’s latest annual report.
Additionally, Abu Hanifah said he is also excited about the potential for orders of MyKad to rebound to pre-Covid-19 levels.
“We will also step-up efforts on our pursuit of various new programmes and initiatives with international travel returning to normalcy.
“This forms part of Datasonic’s plan to diversify our revenue streams. Our team has been travelling overseas to meet with existing and potential partners and customers to scale our business.”
Citing the International Monetary Fund, Abu Hanifah said the world economy is expected to grow at a slower pace of 2.9% for 2023, as rising interest rates and the war in Ukraine continue to weigh on economic activities.
“Similarly, Malaysia’s gross domestic product growth is estimated to slow down to 4.5% in 2023, according to statistics by Bank Negara.”
Abu Hanifah said Datasonic will continue to invest in its research and development and talent to preserve and boost its competitive edge.
By doing so, he said the group will be able to maintain its position as one of the most prominent security-related integrated ICT solutions providers in Malaysia.
For its financial year ended March 31, 2023 (FY23), Datasonic’s net profit rose to RM76.37mil from RM10.24mil in the previous corresponding period, while revenue grew to RM344.71mil from RM136.43mil a year earlier.
RHB Research in a recent report noted that Datasonic’s earnings were lifted by strong demand for passport and MyKad-related solutions.
“We are positive on the recent contract extensions awarded by the Home Ministry, as it helped to alleviate the concern on the non-renewal of contracts temporarily.”
The research house is upbeat about Datasonic’s prospects, going forward.
“We believe extensions of contracts concerning national security-related solutions are very likely, to eliminate the risk of interruptions that may affect the delivery of public services, given the imminent expiry of existing contracts by the second half of 2023 in the absence of any new tender.
“These contracts were initially won through an open tender process. Manufacturing readiness, the quality of services and products and the technical know-how that Datasonic has regarding mission-critical products are the other vital factors.”
RHB Research said the company’s FY24 earnings are likely to hit another high, on the back of sustained strong demand and commencement of new supply contracts.
