VivB
Here is some new news on CP Pokphand. It's looking better for the price of the stock,As we know time will tell. quam.net (HK 043)
Avian flu, floods leave CP Pokphand in the red
By Dennis Ng
STORY: THAI agricultural group C P Pokphand said it remained on the red last year as its performance was hampered by the outbreak of avian flu in Hong kong and severe flooding on the mainland.
The company, however, said it reduced its net loss by 70.5 per cent to US$26.9 million (HK$209.8 million) following stringent cost-control measures.
Turnover fell by 20.4 per cent to only US$1.45 billion.
The group said it sees gradual improvement following tough decisions to cut costs and refocus on its core business.
The company's cost of sales dropped slightly from US$1.60 billion in 1997 to US$1.25 billion in 1998.
A geographic breakdown of the results showed Hong Kong operations bringing in US$23.5 million in operating loss, before interest and taxation.
Its businesses on the mainland, in Thailand and in Turkey brought operating profits of US$57.4 million, US$26.9 million and US$12.3 million, respectively.
The firm's feedmill and poultry units contributed an operating profit of US$83.4 million.
The company said the operating environment for its agriculture business on the mainland was very difficult in the first half 1998, mainly due to the outbreak of avian flu and flooding.
'These, added to problems with smuggling and intense competition from other Southeast Asian countries with devalued currencies, have resulted in overall loss of US$26 million for the agri-business on the mainland,'' the company said.
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Copyright Hong Kong Standard Newspapers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Tuesday May 4 1999
CP Pokphand, top directors censured over rules breach
Heavy criticism: Dhanin Chearavanont
CHRISTINE CHAN
Regulators have publicly censured Thai-based CP Pokphand and six executive directors - including chairman Dhanin Chearavanont - for breaching disclosure rules.
President Sumet Jiaravanon and executive director Thirayut Phitya-Isarakul were singled out for criticism for trying to cover up the breach after it was discovered by auditors.
The Hong Kong stock exchange said the listing committee of a disciplinary review hearing held last month was "extremely dissatisfied and critical" with the conduct of the two executive directors.
CP Pokphand is the locally listed arm of Charoen Pokphand Group, Thailand's giant agricultural conglomerate and the biggest foreign investor in the mainland until the regional financial crisis.
About US$16.57 million worth of loans were advanced by three wholly owned CP Pokphand subsidiaries to a mainland joint venture in which Mr Dhanin and Mr Sumet had a 50 per cent stake, the stock exchange said yesterday.
The deal constituted a connected transaction under the listing rules because Mr Dhanin and Mr Sumet together had an indirect stake of about 50.7 per cent in CP Pokphand.
CP Pokphand and the executive directors in question admitted breaches of the connected transaction rules under Chapter 14 of the exchange's listing rules. All the loans had been repaid with interest.
The exchange said the listing committee of the disciplinary review hearing had been "gravely concerned" by the conduct of Mr Sumet and Mr Thirayut.
They had known of the breach as early as mid-April last year when they were informed by auditors but had taken a "positive decision to conceal the information concerning the financial position of the company from their fellow directors".
The exchange said the two had not informed their colleagues for reasons set out in their submissions.
The committee was also "seriously dissatisfied" with the weak internal control system of the company that had led to the problem itself and its discovery by the auditors rather than management.
The stock exchange listing committee publicly censured the company for breaching connected transaction rules as provided for in Chapter 14 of the exchange listing rules.
Each of CP Pokphand's executive directors - Mr Dhanin, Mr Sumet, Mr Thirayut, Min Tieanworn, Thanakorn Seriburi and Veeravat Kanchanadul - was publicly censured by the listing committee for having:
Breached his undertaking to comply with the exchange listing rules; and
Breached his undertaking to ensure that the company complied, in particular by failing to inform the listing division, shareholders and the investing public about the connected transactions until June 1 and June 3 last year, despite having known of the breach of the listing rules since the middle of April.
Today will be interesting in Hong Kong
Good investing
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