Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Keppel Land’s Third-Quarter Profits Soar

Source : TODAY, Wednesday, October 24, 2007

KEPPEL Land said its third-quarter net profit more than doubled on year, thanks to strong residential sales.

Net profit for the three-month period ended Sept 30 rose to $81.8 million from $38.5 million a year earlier, the unit of Keppel Corporation said in a statement yesterday.

Revenue rose 49.4 per cent to $382 million from $255.6 million a year earlier, thanks to improved returns from property trading in Singapore, China and India.

Revenue was also helped by the launch of a new project in Shanghai, the company said.

Rental income from office buildings and revenue from hotels and resorts were also higher in the third quarter compared with the same period last year, Keppel Land said.

The company pulled in $335.4 million in revenue from property trading, up from $221.5 million. Property investment turnover was $15.3 million, up from $14.6 million, while revenue from hotels and resorts, fund management and property services increased to $31.3 million from $19.5 million.

Overseas earnings represented about 31 per cent of the company’s profit, compared with 50 per cent last year. This was “due to stronger operating performance in Singapore”, the company said.

Keppel Land estimated it will book a net profit of $221.6 million from the sale of a 33.3-per-cent stake in Singapore’s new downtown skyscraper One Raffles Quay to K-Reit Asia. — DOW JONES

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