Datuk Jeffri Salim Davidson, group CEO, Sime Darby — CHAN TAK KONG/The Star
KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Bhd
group CEO Datuk Jeffri Salim Davidson noted an increasingly challenging market, with operations in China experiencing lower margins due to the intense competition.
Announcing its results for the second quarter ended Dec 31, 2024 (2QFY25), Sime Darby said it registered a net profit of RM305mil as compared to a net profit of RM2.29bil in the year-ago quarter, which had benefited from a RM2bil gain on the disposal of Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care in the same quarter in 2023.
Stripping out the gain on disposal, the group's core net profit of RM305mil was a 13.4% improvement from RM269mil in the year-ago quarter.
Revenue during the quarter, meanwhile, was up 14.2% to RM17.73bil from RM15.52bil in the previous comparative quarter.
For the six-month period, Sime Darby recorded a net profit of RM1.11bil compared to RM2.88bil in 6MFY24 while revenue rose to RM35.99bil from RM29.5bil in the previous corresponding period.
"Our teams have been diligently working to improve aftersales revenue, to manage costs and to improve inventory turnover resulting in higher operating cash flows," said Jeffri.
The board of directors announced an interim dividend of three sen per share and a special dividend of one sen per share for the financial year ending June 30, 2025.
According to the group, its performance was mainly driven by the UMW division, which contriuted RM272mil in profit before interest and tax (PBIT) due to higher sales of Perodua vehicles.
The industrial division experienced a marginal PBIT decrease of 4% to RM337mil.
"The division’s Australasia operations recorded lower profits mainly due to the impact of the reduction in parts prices as a result of the weaker Australian dollar versus the US dollar.
"Nevertheless, higher contributions from the Malaysia and Singapore operations helped soften the impact," it said.
The motors division reported a reduced PBIT of RM118mil in Q2FY25 due to lower vehicle sales in Malaysia and Australasia, offset by higher electric vehicle (EV) sales in Singapore.
