CAR seat upholsterer Jackspeed Corp saw its bottom line improve in the first half-year, helped by the share of profits from an associate, even as lower sales costs took the edge off a slide in turnover.

Net profit was S$3.36 million for the six months to Aug 31, up by 27.2 per cent on the previous year, according to unaudited financial statements released on Monday. The rise came despite a 10.3 per cent drop in revenue, to S$26 million.

Revenue was down in both the accessories segment, on the back of a fall in income from an automaker customer in Thailand, and the non-accessories segment, which saw a drop in the volume of motor vehicles traded even as turnover grew in the vehicle financing business.

But the cost of sales fell by 21.3 per cent to S$15.86 million, even as Jackspeed clocked S$1 million in profit contributions from an associated property development project.

Earnings per share ticked up to 1.12 Singapore cents, from 0.99 Singapore cent before, while net asset value was 18.22 Singapore cents, against 17.44 Singapore cents as at Feb 28.

No dividend was declared for the half-year, compared with the interim dividend of 0.5 Singapore cent in the same period the year before.

The group said in its outlook statement that it continues to face challenges amid uncertainty in the global economic climate.