KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 19): Malaysian Pacific Industries Bhd (KL:MPI) reported a 24.52% rise in net profit for the fourth quarter from a year earlier, driven by a 26.16% reduction in operating costs.

For the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2024 (4QFY2024), MPI’s net profit rose to RM40.03 million from RM32.15 million in the same period last year. This resulted in higher earnings per share of 20.08 sen from 16.17 sen, a bourse filing showed on Wednesday.

The company’s revenue inched up 1.48% during the quarter to RM530.5 million from RM522.75 million, driven by an 11% increase in the Asia segment and a 7% rise in the Europe segment. However, this was partially offset by a 30% decline in revenue from the US segment.

The outsourced semiconductor packaging and testing services provider did not declare any dividend for the quarter under review.

For the full FY2024, MPI’s net profit surged 44.15% to RM70.16 million from RM48.67 million a year earlier, while revenue edged up 1.07% to RM1.05 billion from RM1.04 billion.

Looking ahead, MPI’s board anticipates continued uncertainty in the semiconductor industry, with the imposition of US tariffs on various countries further contributing to global economic instability.

However, the growing demand for artificial intelligence and data centres is expected to support the industry, helping to offset weaker demand in the automotive sector, it said.

“Barring any unforeseen circumstances, the board expects the performance for the financial year (FY2025) to be satisfactory,” MPI said.

MPI shares closed 26 sen or 1.23% lower at RM20.96 on Wednesday, valuing the company at RM4.23 billion. Year to date, the stock has declined over 17%, pressured by concerns over US chip export restrictions in early January, further compounded by the emergence of Chinese artificial intelligence start-up DeepSeek’s large language model (LLM).