KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 24): Aluminium products supplier PMB Technology Bhd saw its net profit fall 90.3% to RM1.64 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2023 (3QFY2023) from RM16.96 million a year earlier on lower revenue contribution across its two business segments — manufacturing and trading, and construction and fabrication.

As a result, earnings per share came in lower at 0.12 sen for 3QFY2023 compared with 1.49 sen for 3QFY2022.

Quarterly revenue fell 5.2% to RM296.69 million from RM312.82 million a year earlier.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Friday, PMB Technology said its manufacturing and trading was impacted by the lower selling price of silicon metal despite the higher quantity sold in 3QFY2023. The higher operating costs also dragged the revenue for this segment.

Meanwhile, the weak earnings from the construction and fabrication segment was attributed to the slower progress of certain ongoing projects.

In comparison to the immediate preceding quarter (2QFY2023), PMB’s net profit declined 22.4% from RM2.11 million, even though revenue was up 32.5% from RM223.85 million in 2QFY2023, on the back of higher contributions from both segments in the current quarter.

For the cumulative nine months ended Sept 30, 2023 (9MFY2023), PMB Technology's net profit dropped 86.7% to RM13.49 million from RM101.21 million a year earlier while revenue was down 9.1% to RM795.46 million from RM874.97 million in 9MFY2022.

On prospects, PMB Technology expects the weak global macroeconomic environment to remain the near-term challenge that will weigh on demand for silicon metals.

“In spite of the near-term headwinds, there are reasons for an optimistic longer-term outlook for the industry as the resiliency of the global trends supporting the sustainable growth in demand for silicon metal is increasingly becoming evident,” it said.

Additionally, the group said that it is committed to improving its efficiency in all areas including cost management and to realign its marketing strategies in order to remain competitive globally.

Shares in PMB Technology closed down two sen or 0.67% at RM2.98 on Friday, valuing the group at RM4.85 billion. The stock has fallen 28.37% year to date.