Associates, JVs lift Metro's Q1 bottom line

Singapore

DESPITE gusty headwinds in the retail sector, mainboard-listed Metro Holdings's net profit for the three months ended June 30 (Q1 FY2016) more then trebled to S$37.6 million, from S$10.2 million for the previous corresponding period. Helping to boost its bottom line were improved contributions from its associates and joint ventures (JVs).

The property development and investment group backed by established retail operations in the region saw a 36.8 per cent climb in Q1 revenue to S$42.7 million. This was mainly attributed to the higher turnover from the retail division's new Metro Centrepoint store in Singapore, which commenced operations in the third quarter of FY2015, as well as strong support for Metro Sengkang's closing down sale. This helped to reduce the retail division's losses from S$1.6 million in Q1 FY2015 to S$1.2 million in Q1 FY2016.