SINGAPORE – Singapore’s Olam Group reported a nearly sixfold increase in first-half profit on Aug 14, boosted by gains from asset sales and a revaluation linked to its ongoing restructuring programme.
The agricultural products manufacturer logged a total one-off gain of $1.75 billion from the disposal of a 44.58 per cent stake in Olam Agri and the sale of its technology services business Mindsprint.
That helped the group post profit attributable of $1.91 billion for the six months ended June 30, compared with $323.8 million a year earlier.
Olam declared an interim dividend of seven cents per share, higher than the previous year’s two cents apiece. The company also announced a special dividend of six cents cents per share.
However, the group’s operational profit attributable from continuing operations more than halved to S$64.4 million.
The flagship food ingredients unit, ofi, expects market volatility to continue due to geopolitical developments, evolving trade policies and weather-related supply risks.
The unit targets low- to mid-single-digit volume growth and high single-digit adjusted growth in earnings before interest and tax over the medium term, Olam said. REUTERS
