Cycle & Carriage in the red in Q3 on higher expenses, lower revenue

PETALING JAYA: Cycle & Carriage Bintang Bhd saw a net loss of RM3.26 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2017, with expenses, excluding finance cost and tax, outstripping revenue, which was already lower than the corresponding quarter in 2016.
It made a net profit of RM8.29 million for the quarter ended Sept 30, 2016.
Revenue fell 13% to RM331.61 million from RM380.26 million in the previous year’s corresponding quarter. No dividend was proposed for the quarter.
For the nine months period, its net profit was down 84% to RM6.02 million compared with RM37.46 million in the previous year.
Revenue also decreased by 7% to RM1.04 billion from RM1.12 billion a year ago.
The group faced very difficult trading conditions in the first nine months of 2017, which led to significant reductions in unit sales and earnings.
Its Mercedes-Benz trading operations recorded a loss of RM5.2 million, compared with a profit of RM26.3 million in the previous year, primarily due to discounting pressure and lower volumes, with demand for key models less than expected.
Unit sales were 13% lower and the model mix moved away from S-Class to the lower margin GLA and GLC classes. The group’s after-sales division however, continued to perform well, benefiting from increased throughput.