SHAH ALAM: Pharmaceutical company CCM Duopharma Biotech Bhd (CCMD) is hoping to sustain last year’s financial performance, partly contributed by the strengthening of the ringgit recently.
“We were at almost record levels in terms of profit we achieved in FY18, which is a bright light in the corporate scene,” CCMD group managing director Leonard Ariff Abdul Shatar (pix) told a media briefing to unveil the group’s new logo and name today.
“We really hope that we can carry this level of performance throughout 2019. The board will never allow me to produce results lower than the previous year,” he quipped.
Additionally, Leonard said the stronger ringgit against the US dollar at the moment bodes well for the healthcare industry, especially pharmaceutical companies.
“Apart from salaries and packaging, primarily all raw materials are imported for pharmaceuticals and they are all denominated in US dollars. So any appreciation of the ringgit is actually positive for the company,” he explained.
In FY18, CCMD’s net profit increased 12.19% to RM47.64 million from RM42.46 million in FY17, on higher revenue as well as due to changes in accounting policies arising from adoption of Malaysian Financial Reporting Standards (MFRS).
Its FY18 revenue grew 6.57% to RM498.72 million from RM467.99 million previously mainly due to higher demand from private and public health sector.
This year, Leonard said, the group will focus on the launch of its new products, noting it has recently received registration approval for Erysaa, an erythropoeitin (EPO) product.
“We hope to be able to launch Erysaa come April this year. In the meantime, we will be participating in tenders for EPO,” he said.
EPO is a product that is used to raise red blood cell counts and primarily used by people suffering from kidney complications.
Meanwhile, Leonard disclosed that the group is still in the process of collecting the goods and services tax (GST) refunds from the government, and is hoping to get the payment within this current financial year.
“There are still questions that need to be addressed with the Finance Ministry,” he said.
It was reported last year that the government still owes the pharmaceutical firm about RM10 million in GST refunds.
Earlier today, the group obtained shareholders’ approval to change its name to Duopharma Biotech Bhd, which is an integral part of its rebranding initiative.
The new name will take effect from the date of issuance of the Notice of Registration of New Name by the Companies Commission of Malaysia to the company, which is expected by April.
