Qian Hu Q2 profit takes a plunge

Political turmoil in Europe due to the Greek crisis has affected aquariums as well.

The uncertainty in that region dampened ornamental fish sales for Qian Hu Corp in the second quarter, leading to a 45.5 per cent plummet in net profit from the previous year to just S$12,000, the company said in a Singapore Exchange filing on Thursday.

Revenue for the three months to June 30 also slipped 5 per cent year-on-year to S$20.03 million.

Qian Hu, which mostly depends on sales of ornamental fish and accessories, blamed the financial crisis in Greece for affecting the purchasing sentiments of the group's European customers. It added that fish exports to Russia fell due to economic sanctions and a crude oil slump which took a toll on the country's economy.

It said it would "strive to sustain our export of ornamental fish to diversify customers and countries around the world from our export hubs in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia" while waiting for market conditions to improve.

Earnings per share (EPS) came in at 0.01 Singapore cents for the quarter, which was at least better than the zero EPS the company posted the preceding year.

Net asset value per share was 11.14 Singapore cents as at June 30, a slight drop from 11.24 cents as at Dec 31.

Qian Hu shares jumped 10.7 per cent or 0.6 Singapore cents to 6.2 cents on Thursday before the results were released.