Sri Lanka's Mercantile Shipping losses mount
Friday May 29, 2015 13:59
COLOMBO (EconomyNext) – Sri Lankan ship owner Mercantile Shipping Company has sunk deeper into the red as it made provisions for impairment and foreign exchange losses, its March 2015 quarter and annual results showed.
A stock exchange filing said March 2015 quarter losses had widened to 513 million rupees from 64 million rupees a year ago with revenue up 2 percent to 134 million rupees.
The firm, a joint venture between Germany's Reederei Eugen Friederich GmbH & Co. KG and Mercantile Marine Management Limited, reported a loss per share of 180 rupees for the quarter.
For the financial year ending 31 March 2015, Mercantile Shipping Company said it lost 209 rupees per share with the annual loss rising to 596 million rupees from 186 million rupes the previous year.
The company reported an impairment loss of 237 million rupees in the fourth quarter making provision for accumulated operational losses of Mercantile Emerald Shipping (Pvt) Ltd, a fully owned ship owning subsidiary.
The results also showed a foreign exchange loss of 231 million rupees (1.4 million euros) which resulted mainly from valuing its US dollar loan at the depreciated euro rate.
A note to the accounts said H&M Shipping Services (Pvt) Ltd., the joint venture company with Hemas Holdings, which has a 17.02 percent stake in Mercantile Shipping Company, is in the process of liquidation.
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