Wilmar International Ltd. (WIL), the world’s largest palm oil trader, said second-quarter profit fell 22 percent as industry overcapacity hurt margins in palm oil refining.
* Q2 net profit down 22 pct at $170.7 million
* Revenue little changed at $10.5 billion
* To pay interim dividend of 2 Singapore cents/shr vs 2.5 cents
Palm and Laurics saw pretax profit fall 56 percent to $99.8 million on tight supply of crude palm oil and increased competition due to excess capacity industrywide, Wilmar said. Pretax profit at its plantations division more than double to $107.1 million on improved yields and higher palm prices.
Palm oil, the world’s most-used edible oil, has tumbled 23 percent from an 18-month high in March and entered a bear market last month as production in key nations such as Malaysia expanded and demand in food and biofuel trailed estimates. Record U.S. output of soybeans, crushed to make an alternative oil, is adding to global cooking oil supply this year.
Source:
Bloomberg - http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-08-07/wilmar-quarterly-profit-falls-22-on-shrinking-palm-oil-margins.html
Reuters - http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFL4N0QD3WP20140807