SINGAPORE (Feb 27): Property developer Fragrance Group saw its earnings surge more than six-fold to $48.5 million for the FY17 ended December, from $7.5 million a year ago.
This was on the back of a 66.8% jump in revenue to $198.0 million in FY17, from $118.7 million a year ago.
Revenue from its property development segment rose 58.7% to $159.2 million in FY17, mainly due to the substantial revenue contribution from the CityGate project, which commenced construction in the second quarter of 2016.
Artist's impression of mixed-use development CityGate at Beach Road, which is developed by a 50:50 joint venture between World Class Land, an 80%-owned subsidiary of jeweller Aspial Corporation, and Fragrance Group. When completed, CityGate will comprise 311 residential units and more than 188 retail units (Credit: World Class Land)
Commercial investment revenue climbed 20.1% to $22.2 million n FY17, mainly due to the substantial revenue contribution from Tower 15, Fragrance Empire Building, The Punggol Point, and Victory Centre.
In addition, the group saw its other operating income swell to $32.9 million in FY17, more than seven times higher than the $4.3 million registered a year ago.
This was largely attributable to fair value gain of investment properties, net foreign exchange gain that was mainly attributed to the translation of Australian dollar fixed deposits, and gain on foreign currency options used to hedge against foreign currency exposure.
As at end December, cash and cash equivalents stood at $121.5 million.
“Our good performance in FY2017, with all-round improvements in all of our core businesses, has underscored that our diversification into the property development and hotel investment sectors in Australia and United Kingdom was indeed timely and strategic, thereby strongly positioning the group for sustainable growth in the future,” says Koh Wee Meng, Fragrance’s founder, executive chairman, and CEO.
This story, written by Stanislaus Jude Chan for The Edge Singapore, first appeared on Feb 27.