2021 Interim Results Highlights:
1、 Revenue increased by 8.36% Y-O-Y to RMB13,598 million.
2、 Profit attributable to owners of the Company reached RMB663 million, largely up by 48.14% Y-O-Y.
3、The sales volume of special fertilizers and various differentiated products increased by 44.34% Y-O-Y to 981,500 tons.
(24 August 2021, Hong Kong) Sinofert Holdings Limited ("Sinofert" or the "Company", together with its subsidiaries collectively known as the "Group") (stock: 297.HK) announced the interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2021 (the "Period").
In the first half of 2021, the Group recorded a revenue of RMB13,598 million, up by 8.36% over the corresponding period of last year. Basic earnings per share for the six months ended 30 June 2021 was RMB0.0944, largely up by 47.96% from RMB0.0638 at the same time last year.
For the six months ended 30 June 2021, the Group recorded a sales volume of 6,873 thousand tons, slightly down by 3.91% over the corresponding period in 2020. Commodity and logistics freight prices have been raised sharply and the cost pressure on enterprises has increased significantly due to the impact of monetary policies of global quantitative easing. The Group, by actively coping with market risks, continued to focus on in-depth channel cultivation, implemented differentiated strategies and enhanced product competitiveness.
Against the backdrop of tremendous challenges in the global economy and to consolidate the leading position in the industry, the Group, under the leadership of the Board of Directors, pushed forward strategic transformation and achieved significant improvement under its five major must-win initiatives to help modernize China’s agriculture for the Period. All the three operating segments of the Group, namely, Basic Fertilizers, Distribution and Production recorded increases in revenue in H121.
In the Basic Fertilizer segment, the Group recorded a profit of RMB395 million, an increase of 23.80% from RMB319 million over the corresponding period in 2020, which was mainly because of the reinforcement of strategic partnership with domestic and overseas core suppliers, promotion of strategic sourcing, and the constant innovation in business model to accelerate business transformation. The Distribution segment maintained its focus on optimizing channel structure and product mix, with the percentage of high margin products and high net worth customers increasing year by year. In the first half of 2021, the Distribution segment realized a profit of RMB173 million, up by 21.46% from H120. Major production subsidiaries of the Production segment continued to strengthen basic businesses, adjusted product structure according to latest market demand and strengthened lean production management. In the first half of 2021, the Production segment recorded a profit of RMB174 million, up by 58.95% Y-O-Y.
For the six months ended 30 June 2021, the combined sales volume of special fertilizers and various differentiated products was 981,500 tons, largely up by 45.64% from H120. Sales volume of special fertilizers reached 70,000 tons, up by 23.02% from H120, and sales volume of differentiated compound fertilizers was 642,400 tons, up by 50.02% over the same period last year; sales volume of differentiated nitrogen fertilizers was 187,100 tons, recording a 27.89% increase Y-O-Y; sales volume of new phosphate fertilizers was 82,000 tons, significantly up by 92.94% from the corresponding period last year. With the continuous adjustment of crop planting structure, the market demand for fertilizers has changed profoundly. By actively responding to the call for less usage and more efficiency in fertilizer application, the Group continued to promote product structure adjustment to accelerate business transformation.
In the first half of 2021, the Group recorded a sales volume of 667,400 tons as a result of R&D as well as commercialization and market promotion of new products, featuring an increase of 42.12% compared with H120. Focusing on fertilizer application reduction and efficiency enhancement as well as soil improvement, the Group has conducted research on key underlying technologies including bio-stimulants and microbial agents and has developed soil conditioner products.
In the Period, Fertex, the industrial chain service platform developed by the Group, realized the connection of its transaction, bidding and logistics systems and officially launched its all-region transaction and bidding services. The platform has attracted 270,000 registered users, as at the end of June 2021. The sales volume of differentiated products has also grown rapidly, with products improved and upgraded through integration of research, production and marketing promotion. Various channels have been developed in a deep-going way to empower core retailers, facilitated collaborative sales of crop protection products with Syngenta Group’s members, and actively introduced advanced technology from overseas to further optimize local products. Sinochem Chongqing Fuling Chemicals Co., Ltd., with an accumulated expenditure of RMB545 million, has completed 38% of the overall progress in physical shape of its new plant. A special team for the production and marketing has been established to get ready for the production and operation in the future.
As at 30 June 2021, the Group's current ratio was 1.27, and the debt-to-equity ratio was 20.29%. Enjoying relatively high banking facilities, the domestic credit rating of the Group has maintained AAA for twelve consecutive years. In addition, the Group had smooth financing channels and diversified fund-raising methods.
Looking ahead, Mr. Qin Hengde, Executive Director and Chief Executive Officer of Sinofert, said, “In the bigger picture of ‘complete eradication of absolute poverty’, the focus of work in ‘agriculture, rural areas and farmers’ will shift to comprehensive rural revitalization, with high quality, branding and modernization as the new directions of agricultural development. The government has been expanding their efforts in the protection and improvement of cultivated land quality, launching demonstrations of fertilizer reduction and efficiency enhancement, and guides enterprises and social service organizations to carry out fertilization in a scientific and technological way. As China’s leading technology-based marketing and service provider of crop nutrition, the Group is committed to becoming the most innovative and globalized Chinese agricultural technology company, enabling modern agriculture to benefit more farmers and consumers, and facilitating the upgrading from products to “Products + Services” through technology and innovation. The Group would be devoted to facilitating the agricultural modernization in China, providing Chinese farmers with services and guaranteeing the safety and sustainability of food supply in the country.”
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About Sinofert Holdings Limited
Sinofert Holdings Limited is a comprehensive crop nutrition enterprise centering on distribution services and vertically integrating production and network distribution. Major businesses of the Group include the production, import and export, distribution and retail of raw materials and finished products of crop nutrition products, provision of technological research and development and services relating to the crop nutrition business and products, exploration and exploitation of phosphate mine, and production of monocalcium/dicalcium phosphate.
The Company was listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 28, 2005. The Group strives to become China’s leading technology-based marketing service provider of crop nutrition.