[SINGAPORE] Golden Agri-Resources (GAR) reported net profit of US$55 million for the first quarter ended Mar 31, up 47 per cent from US$37 million in the previous corresponding period. This was mostly driven by stronger plantation output and an appreciation in the price of crude palm oil, the company said on Thursday (May 15).
Revenue was up 19 per cent or US$2.6 billion in the year-ago period at US$3 billion. This rise was driven by an increase in crude palm oil market prices of 27 per cent from the previous corresponding period, averaging US$1,156 per tonne in the quarter.
This appreciation offset a fall in downstream sales volume, the company said. It reported a 5 per cent drop in year-on-year sales to 2.8 million tonnes in the quarter, down from 2.9 million tonnes. This was in line with slowing global economic conditions, GAR noted.
Operational performance in upstream palm oil product output grew 11 per cent to 658,000 tonnes from 590,000 tonnes in the corresponding period of the year before. Fruit yield for the quarter climbed 12 per cent to 4.35 tonnes per hectare as the impact of El Nino tailed off.
GAR’s planted area totalled about 534,000 hectares, of which about 499,000 hectares were mature. The total area consisted of 417,000 hectares of nucleus estates and 117,000 hectares of plasma estates.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation for the quarter grew 12 per cent to US$259 million, up from US$231 million the year before. Meanwhile, the company reported foreign exchange losses of US$7 million, down 70 per cent from the US$22 million loss in Q1 2024.
GAR said palm oil production in early 2025 experienced a recovery due to previous weather-related disruptions subsiding. Yet, the company said it expected geopolitical volatility and shifting weather patterns to continue to drag on growth prospects in soft commodities. Along with narrowing price premiums for the commodity, GAR expected these factors to support crude palm oil prices in the near term.
Shares of GAR closed flat at S$0.245 on Wednesday.
