YING Li International Real Estate has posted a 56.3 per cent drop in first quarter group net profit to 4.7 million yuan from a profit of 10.7 million yuan in the year-ago period.

This came despite a 53.1 per cent increase in revenue to 309.5 million yuan.

Ying Li's bottomline was affected by a drop in other income on the one hand, and higher administrative expenses, finance costs and taxation, on the other.

Ying Li said the rise in revenue was mainly driven by sale of properties segment, due to the continued handover of the bespoke units at Ying Li International Electrical and Hardware Centre Phases 1A and 2A and the sales of completed units from older commercial projects. 

It also said that the gross profit margin from the sale of properties segment rose by 9.5 percentage points to 15.2 per cent in Q1 FY2018.

The drop in other income was mainly due to lower interest income stemming largely from the withdrawal of fixed deposits pledged to financial institutions and others.  

The jump in admin expenses came on the back of higher commissions paid out during the quarter and an increase in wage-related expenses arising from changes in the employees' compensation structure and higher advisory and professional fees incurred.

Meanwhile, finance costs rose due to a termination of the amount of capitalised finance costs on the Ying Li International Commercial Centre upon the disposal of the project in Q4 FY2017.

Income tax expense rose chiefly due to higher taxable profits generated from the sale of properties in Q1 FY2018.

Earnings per share halved to 0.002 yuan in Q1 FY2018 from 0.004 yuan in Q1 FY2017.

"The group will remain watchful on the macro industry uncertainty and market volatility, while continuing to scout for sound development and investment opportunities in Tier 1 and fast-growing lower-tier cities to build pipelines for future growth," the group said.