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| Thursday, 4 November 2004 |
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Tourism boom spurs Hemas Holdings into leisure sector by Channa Kasturisinghe Hemas Holdings Ltd. will continue to invest in the leisure sector in the future taking advantage of the booming tourism industry, a result of the peaceful environment prevailing in the country, the Company's Chief Executive Officer Husein Esufally said. The CEO presenting his company's financial performance for the six months ended September 30 said that Rs. 100 million has been already committed for investments in Serendib Group for refurbishment and upgrading of Lihiniya Surf and Peace Haven holiday resorts. "The Company will vigorously pursue opportunities for growth and internal efficiencies in its quest to enhance shareholder value," Esufally said. He said the Company recorded a turnover of Rs. 3.8 billion for the six months posting a growth of 25 percent over the corresponding period last year. "Profit after tax was Rs.258 million, a year-on-year decline of 1 percent. Excluding last year's capital gains of Rs. 33 million, profit after tax reflects a growth of 13 percent," the CEO said. He said the Personal Care Sector recorded a turnover growth of 7 percent and a profit growth of 37 percent, in an environment where industry growth was stagnant. "The healthcare sector showed strong performance recording a turnover growth of 31 percent while profits grew by 48 percent. The positive trend in the aviation sector contributed to the good performance of the Transportation Sector, which recorded a profit growth of 55 percent. The leisure sector enhanced its position in inbound tour operations by securing several new accounts which are expected to generate good results going forward," Esufally said. He said Hemas power project has been a real success as Heladhanavi completed the commissioning of the power project 68 days ahead of the scheduled start date and a short-term power purchase agreement was entered into with the Ceylon Electricity Board. "This will result in additional profits, and although the Strategic Investment Sector has reported a marginal loss for the period under review, the sector is expected to show good results for the remaining six months of the year," the CEO said. Canon's Director and General Manager Corporate Products Planning, Atsufumi Irie and Senior General Manager Printer Division, Yuji Sugie were also present. |
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