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Johannesburg - Sugar producer Tongaat Hulett [JSE:TON] advised Monday that headline earnings for the half-year to end September 2010 are expected to increase by 12% to R507m compared to the R452m earned in the same period last year.
Headline earnings per share for the half-year are expected to be 482c per share from 438c per share a year ago - an increase of 10%. Net profit per share is also expected to reflect an increase of approximately 10%.
The company said the past six months have been characterised by counteractive factors. Tongaat Hulett is starting to benefit from the targeted sugar production growth in Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Sugar production in South Africa has been affected by the most severe drought since the mid 1990s negating the hectares under cane supplying Tongaat Hulett's mills increasing by some 2 000 hectares.
European and world sugar prices were favourable. In Mozambique, local sugar prices have not kept pace with the weakening of the metical. Exchange rates have been less favourable than in the corresponding six months in 2009.
In the current economic climate, the sale of development land remained depressed. Tongaat Hulett's profit from operations for the half-year is expected to increase by 10% to R963m from the R873m earned in the comparative six months in 2009.
This includes profit from the Mozambique sugar operations of R163m (2009: R79m), the Zimbabwe sugar operations of R303m (2009: R326m), the South African agriculture, milling and refining operations of R47m (2009: R77m) and the various other sugar and downstream activities of R155m (2009: R156m).
Tongaat's results are scheduled for release on Monday 15 November 2010.
Headline earnings per share for the half-year are expected to be 482c per share from 438c per share a year ago - an increase of 10%. Net profit per share is also expected to reflect an increase of approximately 10%.
The company said the past six months have been characterised by counteractive factors. Tongaat Hulett is starting to benefit from the targeted sugar production growth in Mozambique and Zimbabwe.
Sugar production in South Africa has been affected by the most severe drought since the mid 1990s negating the hectares under cane supplying Tongaat Hulett's mills increasing by some 2 000 hectares.
European and world sugar prices were favourable. In Mozambique, local sugar prices have not kept pace with the weakening of the metical. Exchange rates have been less favourable than in the corresponding six months in 2009.
In the current economic climate, the sale of development land remained depressed. Tongaat Hulett's profit from operations for the half-year is expected to increase by 10% to R963m from the R873m earned in the comparative six months in 2009.
This includes profit from the Mozambique sugar operations of R163m (2009: R79m), the Zimbabwe sugar operations of R303m (2009: R326m), the South African agriculture, milling and refining operations of R47m (2009: R77m) and the various other sugar and downstream activities of R155m (2009: R156m).
Tongaat's results are scheduled for release on Monday 15 November 2010.
