Hu An tumbles into 164m yuan net loss in Q4

Hu An Cable Holdings said a slowdown in China and government tightening sent the cable and wire maker into a net loss of 164 million yuan (S$36.14 million) in the fourth quarter of 2014.

The company posted a net profit of 39.4 million yuan in the year-ago period. On a per-share basis, Hu An's net loss for the three months ended December 2014 was 0.162 yuan.

The fourth-quarter hit dragged Hu An to a full-year net loss of 161.6 million yuan, or 0.16 yuan per share.

Hu An said sales for all products fell during the year as revenue shrank 23.3 per cent to 2.2 billion yuan.

"For the year ended Dec 31, 2014, China's economic reforms have posed an unprecedented challenge to our business environment," the company stated. "China is rebalancing its economy from an investment-driven growth model to a consumption-based growth model. Banks have tightened financing facilities for capital-intensive sectors including traditional cables and wires industry. In addition, the China government has launched various initiatives to streamline and tighten the operations of state-owned enterprises since the beginning of 2014."

Hu An said it will be more stringent in assessing the creditability of its clients and will be more prudent in selecting collaborations and partnerships. The company will also seek to raise sales to industries that it believes have better prospects and payment terms.

Hu An shares closed flat a 2.6 Singapore cents on Friday before the results were announced.