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MELBOURNE, Australia (TheStreet) – BHP Billiton(BHP Quote), the world’s largest mining company, said profit for the year ended June 30 fell 62% to $5.88 billion from $15.39 billion a year earlier as revenue fell 16% to $50.2 billion.
The profit decline follows a drop in metal prices and demand amid the global economic downturn.
“Over the past financial year the global economy
deteriorated rapidly as a result of a significant decline in consumer demand stemming from the financial crisis,” BHP said. “Any assumption of a quick return to historical trend growth may be premature.”
The company added that “structural economic problems will take time to correct and may hold back growth over the medium term,” BHP said.
BHP said it was raising its full-year dividend by 17% to 82 cents a share.
Net operating cash flow for fiscal 2009 rose 6% to a record $18.86 billion, BHP said in a statement Wednesday.
BHP also said it was forming a Western Australia iron ore production joint venture with rival Rio Tinto(RTP Quote).
Once these most recent quarterly results are finalized, they will be run through TheStreet.com Ratings’ model and our ratings will be adjusted accordingly. To keep up to date on all of our ratings, visit TheStreet.com Ratings Screener.
On March 5, 2009, Braskem S.A.(BAK Quote), a petrochemicals company, reported that it fell to a net loss in Q4 FY08, hurt by the negative impact of foreign currency translation. Net loss for the quarter stood at Brazilian Reais (R$) 2.11 billion, or R$4.15 per share, compared to a profit of R$101.00 million, or R$0.23 per share, in the prior year’s quarter.
Net revenue for the fourth quarter dropped 13.9% to R$4.11 billion from R$4.77 billion a year ago due to lower sales across markets. Revenue from the domestic market slipped 15.5% to R$3.16 billion from R$3.73 billion. Additionally, revenue from the export market dipped 7.9% to R$957.00 million from R$1.04 billion in the year-ago quarter. Revenue from both markets decreased due to lower revenue across business units.
Braskem recorded EBITDA of R$633.00 million in Q4 FY08 compared to R$721.00 million in Q4 FY07. Moreover, EBITDA margin improved to 15.40% from 15.10% in the same quarter of the last year.
During the quarter under review, Braskem approved the merger of Ipiranga Petroquimica (IPQ), Petroquimica Paulinia S.A. (PPSA) into the company and the spun off a portion of Ipiranga Quimica (IQ). The company also approved the investment of R$488.00 million to build the Green PE plant at the Triunfo Petrochemical Complex.
For FY08, total revenue decreased 4.4% to R$17.96 billion from R$18.79 billion in the previous year. Moreover, the company fell to a net loss during the year which stood at R$2.49 billion, or R$4.91 per share, compared to a profit of R$642.00 million, or R$1.43 per share in FY07.
Looking forward, the company is projecting growth in thermoplastic resin sales volume to be in the range of 3.0% and 5.0% in FY09.
SASKATOON, SASKATCHEWAN–(Marketwire – 08/12/09) – Cameco Corporation (TSX:CCO – News) (NYSE:CCJ – News) today reported second quarter 2009 net earnings of $247 million ($0.63 per share diluted), $97 million higher than net earnings of $150 million ($0.42 per share diluted) recorded in the second quarter of 2008. For the six months ended June 30, 2009, net earnings were $329 million ($0.85 per share diluted), $45 million higher than net earnings of $284 million ($0.79 per share diluted) recorded in the first half of 2008.
Second quarter 2009 adjusted net earnings(1) of $140 million ($0.36 per share adjusted and diluted) were 1% higher than in the second quarter of 2008. This was due to higher earnings in the fuel services and electricity businesses, partially offset by lower results in our uranium and gold businesses.
Adjusted net earnings(1) for the first half of 2009 were 20% lower than in 2008 due to lower earnings in the uranium and gold businesses, partially offset by higher results in the fuel services and electricity businesses.
In our uranium business, higher costs of sales adversely affected uranium profits in the second quarter and for the first half of the year. However, these costs for the year, excluding costs for purchased uranium, are still expected to be within our prior guidance (increasing by between 5% and 10%). Overall costs of sales are forecast to rise by 20% to 25% as we expect to purchase additional uranium at prices substantially higher than our costs of production to support our sales activities, including higher trading volumes.
Our gold business was impacted by lower gold production and higher operating costs during the quarter and for the first six months of the year.
In our electricity business, an increase in the realized price led to stronger results in the quarter and for the first half of the year. The increase was due largely to revenue recognized by BPLP under its agreement with the Ontario Power Authority (OPA). In addition, an increase in generation contributed to the improved results for the first six months.
Results in our fuel services business were positively impacted by higher realized prices both during the quarter and for the first half of the year. In addition, during the quarter an increase in sales contributed to the stronger quarterly results.
“Cameco has delivered strong financial results complemented by good performance at the company’s operations during the first half of 2009,” said Jerry Grandey, Cameco’s president and CEO.
SHANGHAI, Aug. 12 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ — E-House (China) Holdings Limited (“E-House” or the “Company”) (NYSE: EJ – News), a leading real estate services company in China, today announced its unaudited financial results for the fiscal quarter and six months ended June 30, 2009.
Financial and Operating Highlights
-- Total gross floor area ("GFA") of new properties sold reached 2.7
million square meters in the second quarter of 2009, an increase of
183% from 1.0 million square meters for the same quarter in 2008. Total
value of new properties sold was $3.0 billion in the second quarter of
2009, an increase of 172% from $1.1 billion for the same quarter in
2008.
-- Total revenues were $63.5 million for the second quarter of 2009, an
increase of 48% from $43.0 million for the same quarter in 2008.
-- Net income was $19.3 million, or $0.24 per ADS, for the second quarter
of 2009, an increase of 65% from $11.7 million, or $0.14 per ADS, for
the same quarter in 2008.
-- Net income excluding share-based compensation expenses (non-GAAP) was
$21.4 million, or $0.27 per ADS (non-GAAP), for the second quarter of
2009, an increase of 68% from $12.7 million, or $0.15 per ADS
(non-GAAP), for the same quarter in 2008. (See "About Non-GAAP
Financial Measures" and "Reconciliation of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results"
below for more information about the non-GAAP financial measures
included in this press release.)
"I am pleased to report a solid second quarter in which E-House delivered
strong growth in both revenues and profits," said Mr. Xin Zhou, E-House's
chairman and chief executive officer. "We have long believed that E-House's
business model and strategy will make us one of the earliest and biggest
beneficiaries when China's real estate sector begins a recovery, and our
second quarter results validate this belief. As real estate transaction volume
staged an impressive rebound across the country since the start of the spring,
we have continued to outperform the market with strong growth in both primary
agency and secondary brokerage segments. Moreover, our information and
consulting segment continues its solid growth, and our new advertising segment
has started to make meaningful contributions to our revenues. Overall, our
business is firing on all cylinders."
Mr. Zhou continued, “Looking forward to the second half of 2009, we are confident in the Chinese government’s continued commitment to stimulate economic growth and maintain stable development of the real estate industry. As in the past, E-House is very well positioned to take advantage of the favorable market conditions given our strong project pipeline, brand recognition and execution capabilities. We are confident that we can build on the solid results of the first half and continue strong revenue growth in the second half of 2009. Furthermore, we believe that our revenue increase, coupled with effective cost control, will result in even better profit growth and higher profit margin.”
Mr. Li-Lan Cheng, E-House’s chief financial officer added, “Our second quarter results clearly reflect the strong recovery of the Chinese real estate industry, but also demonstrate our ability to leverage the favorable market conditions to deliver better results. The growth in our transaction volume again outstripped market average, indicating our continued rise in market share. Also, we were able to achieve revenue growth while keeping our cost base relatively stable, allowing us to deliver improved net profit margin compared to the second quarter of 2008. Given our projected revenue growth and higher average commission rate in the second half, we can expect further improvements in our profit margins.”
Financial Results for the Second Quarter of 2009
Revenues
Second quarter total revenues were $63.5 million, an increase of 48% from $43.0 million for the same quarter of 2008. For the first half of 2009, total revenues were $96.3 million, an increase of 26% from $76.2 million for the same period in 2008.
Primary Real Estate Agency Services
Second quarter revenues from primary real estate agency services were $41.2 million, an increase of 46% from $28.3 million for the same quarter of 2008. This increase was mainly due to a 183% increase in total GFA and a 172% increase in total transaction value of new properties sold, partially offset by a lower average commission rate of 1.4% in the second quarter of 2009, compared to 2.6% for the same period in 2008. (See “Selected Operating Data” below for more details on total GFA and total transaction value of new properties sold.) For the first half of 2009, revenues from primary real estate agency services were $58.6 million, an increase of 17% from $50.1 million for the same period in 2008. Total GFA and transaction value of new properties sold increased by 160% and 137%, respectively, for the first half of 2009 compared to the same period of 2008, partially offset by a lower average commission rate of 1.3% compared to 2.7% for the same period of 2008. The Company expects its average commission rate to gradually increase in the second half of 2009 as higher transaction volume and value will result in more bonus commissions being recognized upon achieving specified sales targets.
BEIJING, Aug. 11 /PRNewswire-Asia/ — Huaneng Power International, Inc. (the “Company”) (NYSE: HNP; HKEx: 902; SSE: 600011) today announced the unaudited operating results for the six months ended 30 June 2009.
For the six months ended 30 June 2009, the Company and its subsidiaries recorded consolidated operating revenue of RMB33.61 billion (equivalent to approximately USD4.92 billion), representing an increase of 9.07% as compared to the same period of 2008. The profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was RMB1.87 billion (equivalent to approximately USD274 million), representing an increase of 443.94% as compared to the same period last year. The earnings per share was RMB0.16, and the profit per American Depositary Share (ADS) amounted to RMB6.21 (equivalent to approximately USD0.91).
During the first half of 2009, under the macroeconomic control policies of “promoting domestic demand, maintaining growth and readjusting structure”, the national GDP grew at a rate of 7.1%, indicating that the national economy began to pick up steadily. However, the outlook of the international economy is still uncertain and so the external environment for the PRC’s economic development is still severe. The Company actively coped with the new changes of the national and international economic situations and achieved new developments in various aspects including production safety, cost control, energy saving, environmental protection, project development and capital operation.
Power Generation
During the first half of 2009, the Company’s power plants within China achieved a total power generation of 86.107 billion kWh based on a consolidated basis, a decrease of 5.84% over the same period of last year. The decrease in power generation was mainly due to the following factors: the declining power demand in the domestic power market due to the impact of the international financial crisis; and a negative growth of the Company’s power generation due to the reduction of average power generation utilization hours for a majority of areas in the PRC as a result of the continued commencement of operation of new generating units. As at 30 June 2009, Tuas Power Ltd. in Singapore achieved a total power generation of 4.723 billion kWh, representing a decrease of 6.32% compared to the same period of last year.
Cost Control
Since 2009, coal supply tended to be eased from a tight situation. There were slight price fluctuations in the domestic coal market, and coal prices were clearly lower than those of the same period of last year. International demand for coal was weak and prices continued to fall. Under the circumstance that key contracts have not been signed up, the Company adopted various measures including optimizing the coal supply structure, increasing imported coal purchase volume and rationalizing inventories arrangements according to production requirements, with an aim to reduce average coal purchase prices. The unit fuel cost for the domestic business of the Company for the first half of the year was RMB220.82/MWh, representing a decrease of 2.63% compared to the same period of last year.
Energy Saving and Environmental Protection
The Company attaches great importance to energy saving and environmental protection work. All the newly built generating units are equipped with flue- gas desulphurization facilities and the Company has strengthened renovation of environmental protection facilities on the existing generating units. As at 30 June 2009, the installed desulphurized generating units of the Company accounted for approximately 93% of the installed capacity of the existing coal-fired units of the Company.
Project Development and Construction
To date, three projects of the Company have obtained the approval of the National Development and Reform Commission, namely, two 300MW-level co- generating units at Yingkou Co-generation Power Plant Project, one 200MW generating unit at Ganhekou Second Wind Power Plant Project and the second 600MW coal-fired generating unit of Jinggangshan Power Plant Phase II Project. The Company has made smooth progress on its construction projects and preparation work of other proposed projects.
Capital Operation
On 21 April 2009, the Company entered into the Yangliuqing Co-generation Power Plant (“Yangliuqing Co-generation”) Equity Interest Transfer Agreement and Beijing Co-generation Power Plant (“Beijing Co-generation”) Equity Interest Transfer Agreement (“Transfer Agreements”) with China Huaneng Group (“Huaneng Group”) and Huaneng International Power Development Corporation (“HIPDC”), respectively. According to the Transfer Agreements, the Company will be transferred a 55% equity interest in the registered capital of Yangliuqing Co-generation and a 41% equity interest in the registered capital of Beijing Co-generation. The transfers were approved at the shareholders’ meeting of the Company on 18 June 2009. Currently, the transactions are waiting for the approval by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. After the completion of the transfers, the Company’s operating scale and service areas will be enlarged and its profitability will be increased, thereby further consolidating the position of the Company as one of the largest independent power generation companies in the PRC. The Company’s installed capacity will be increased by 1,006.45MW on an equity basis.
In the second half of 2009, the national economy will continue to grow at a relatively fast pace, thus providing a favourable external environment for the Company. The State will continue to deepen electricity tariff reforms, gradually improve the pricing mechanism of on-grid electricity tariffs, electricity transmission and distribution tariffs and electricity selling tariffs, and timely rationalize the contradiction between coal and electricity, thereby creating the conditions for easing the operating pressure of the Company.
Meanwhile, the Company still faces various difficulties and challenges in its operation. Given that there is an increase in the number of newly operated generating units nationwide in 2009, the power supply and demand situation will be further eased, the utilization hours of coal-fired generating units nationwide will continue to decline, and internal competition of the power generation industry will intensify, thus further increasing the operating pressure of the Company. Coal prices will still hover at high levels and annual key contracts have not been signed up, and these uncertain factors will, to a certain extent, affect the production safety and profitability of the Company. Meanwhile, with the continued strengthening of environmental protection by the State, environmental protection standards are upgraded continuously, which will exert pressure over the control of the production and operating costs of the Company. Lastly, the State is in the process of adjusting the energy structure by focusing on the development of clean energy and renewable energy, thus putting forward stricter requirements for the development of new projects of the Company in the future.
While the Company will fully leverage its own advantages in terms of resources, scale, geographical coverage and costs, it will actively expand the room for development, strengthen marketing work, strive to fulfill the annual power generation plan, strictly control costs, endeavour to control unit fuel costs and increase the Company’s profitability.
The major tasks of the Company for the second half of 2009 include: to strengthen safe production and management and to ensure stable operation of its generating units; to strengthen the sales force and to endeavour to increase the power output of the Company; to use the best endeavours to ensure a safe, stable and effective fuel supply and to strive to enlarge fuel supply channels and effectively control fuel purchase prices; to promote energy saving and emissions reduction work in full force and to actively carry out detailed management of energy consumption indices and an optimized operation of generating units; to strengthen internal management and to effectively control production costs; to actively push forward preliminary work of projects; to seize the opportunities of the State’s adjustment of energy and transport strategy deployment by further optimizing power plants structure and adjusting their deployment; to strengthen the management of infrastructure construction, and to ensure safe, stable and economical operation of newly operated generating units whilst meeting the requirements of energy-saving and environmentally friendly generating units; to actively explore financing channels so as to ensure funding support for the scale development of the Company.
Huaneng Power International, Inc. wholly owns 17 operating power plants, and has controlling interests in 13 operating power companies and minority interests in 5 operating power companies in the PRC. The Company’s power plants are extensively located in 12 provinces and 2 municipalities. In addition, the Company wholly owns one operating power company in Singapore. Currently, the Company has a controlling generation capacity of 40,939MW and a total generation capacity of 39,203MW on an equity basis and is one of the largest listed power producers in China……
Q2 net loss of 18 cents per share
* Shares fall 7 percent in premarket trade
NEW YORK, Aug 11 (Reuters) – China’s JA Solar Holdings Co Ltd (JASO.O) reported on Wednesday a wider quarterly net loss, as tight credit markets have cut demand for renewable power and sent prices on solar panels into a tailspin.
The second-quarter net loss was $28.5 million, or 18 cents per share, compared with a loss of 1 cent per share a year earlier.
Revenue slid 51 percent to $88 million. Analysts had been expecting revenue to fall as low as $66.7 million, according to Reuters Estimates.
Earlier this month, JA Solar unexpectedly said its chairman, Baofang Jin, would take on the role of chief executive. Former CEO Samuel Yang is now vice chairman, reporting to Jin.
Shares in JA Solar fell 7 percent to $4.88 per share in premarket trade. (Reporting by Matt Daily, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)
NEW YORK (AP) — Macy’s Inc. posted a second-quarter profit and beat analyst expectations even as the department store chain’s results were weighed down by costs for consolidations and store closings.
The chain says it is boosting its outlook as it benefits from the cost-cutting.
Macy’s earned $7 million, or 2 cents per share. That compares with profit of $73 million, or 17 cents per share, a year ago.
Excluding charges, profit came in at 20 cents per share, beating analysts’ projections of 15 cents.
Revenue was $5.16 billion, down almost 10 percent.
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