LionGold narrows Q1 loss on lower 'other expenses'

CATALIST-LISTED gold miner LionGold said on Thursday it has narrowed its net losses for the first quarter ended June 30, 2015, to S$802,000, from S$20.3 million in the year-ago period.

This was mainly due to a much smaller sum of "other expenses", which at S$201,000 were significantly less than the S$11 million incurred a year ago.

"The decrease is mainly due to (1) allowance for impairment on available-for-sale financial assets of S$8.5 million incurred in 1Q2015 which did not recur in 1Q2016; and (2) S$1.6 million gain recognised from the disposal of available-for-sale financial assets in 1Q2016," it said.

Its bottom line also recovered on the back of higher revenue and the depreciation of the Australian dollar against the US dollar.

Revenue rose 11.5 per cent to S$15.5 million due to more gold sold in the quarter at higher average selling prices.

"The depreciation of AUD was deemed favourable to the group as gold prices are quoted in USD, whereas the costs are mostly incurred in AUD at Castlemaine Goldfields," it added.

LionGold finished unchanged at S$0.011 on Thursday, having fallen from a peak of more than S$1.70 in August 2013.