Zhejiang Glass Co Ltd said its 1H 2004 net profit almost doubled to CNY 109.89 million, compared with CNY 56.11 million year-on-year, mainly thanks to a more than 30% increase in production volume and…
Zhejiang Glass Co Ltd said its 1H 2004 net profit almost doubled to CNY 109.89 million, compared with CNY 56.11 million year-on-year, mainly thanks to a more than 30% increase in production volume and a rise in the average sales price of its glass products. The Hong Kong-listed company said total revenue was up 81.45% to CNY 565.20 million, compared with CNY 311.49 million in 2003. Revenues from flat glass sales increased 72.3% year-on-year to CNY 531.3 million, accounting for 94% of total sales. Processed glass sales reached 1.255 million square meters, compared with 84,000 square meters in 2003, generating turnover of CNY 33.9 million, more than ten times that of 2003. Flat glass output rose 37% year-on-year to 7.4 million weight cases or 370,000 tons. Gross profit margin reached 35%, 9% up on the 26% recorded in 2003. The company expects to see flat glass account for a smaller proportion of total sales in the 2H 2004 as value-added-products such as laminated glass and low-emissivity coated glass become more popular. The company also expects the average unit cost of sale for 2004 to go as high as CNY 49 per weight case, compared with CNY 43 per case in 2003, due to the rising cost of fuel oil and soda ash. However, the company“s soda ash production facility in Qinghai province, which is expected to start operating in the 2H 2005, is expected to reduce the average unit sales cost significantly. The company sold about 95% of its products to Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu provinces with the remainder going to Guangdong. (USD 1 = CNY 8.3)