Achieva posts $464.6 million sales for FY2002
– Group to sharpen focus on margin-driven business in FY2003
March 13, 2003, Singapore — Mainboard-listed Achieva Limited (“Achieva” or “the Group”), one of the top Asia-Pacific knowledge-based, value-added distributors and IT solutions providers focusing on electronics and IT-related products, today reported a group turnover of S$464.6 million for the financial year ended 31 December 2002.
The Group registered a 3.7% decline in turnover from the corresponding period last year, primarily due to lower sales from the Group’s PC peripherals business as well as severe price erosion resulting from oversupply in markets such as Singapore and Vietnam. On the other hand, markets in Australia and Malaysia enjoyed steady sales growth of 10.2% and 12.5% respectively, while the Philippines posted modest growth of 3.7%. The Group’s electronic components business increased its contribution to turnover by 2.6%, part of which came from new markets in North Asia.
The financial year closed with a net loss of S$7.9 million, which reflected the challenging market conditions that led to eroded profit margins for both the PC peripherals and electronic components businesses. The Group’s operating loss for the year was also due partly to a one-time write-off of S$2.2 million for its investment in Nano Storage Pte Ltd, start-up costs associated with the expansion of its electronic components business in North Asia, provision for doubtful debts and stock obsolescence and write-offs mainly in the PC peripherals business, as well as unrealised forex losses. The Group on a prudent basis has made a further provision for doubtful debts and is actively pursuing the recovery of these debts.
Loss per share for the Group is 1.78 cents, while net asset value (NAV) per share is 11.14 cents.
Commenting on the results, Mr Henry Lim, President and CEO of Achieva, said: “The year 2002 had been a difficult year as a result of a tough business environment which was heightened by global economic and political volatility. In the light of these unfavourable developments and the increasingly competitive Asian markets, the Group turned in a disappointing performance. We took a strategic review of our businesses to sharpen our focus on our core competencies. For our PC peripheral business, we have reduced operating costs and streamlined our product portfolio to be margin-driven. For our electronics division, we managed to remain profitable and expanded our operations in North Asia, despite the high start-up costs in North Asia and India.
“Going forward, we expect the challenges in the PC peripheral markets to prevail during the year. However, with our new strategy of focusing on higher-margin products and a tighter cost structure, we expect our PC peripherals division to perform better than FY02. Our electronics division will continue to expand in the robust North Asian markets and expect to stay profitable in the current year. With the liquidation of NanoStorage completed, the Group also does not expect to incur any further losses from this investment. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, we expect the Group to improve its performance in FY03 compared to FY02.”
The Directors are not recommending any dividend for the year ended Dec 31, 2002.
About Achieva
Listed on the Mainboard of the Singapore Exchange since June 2000, Achieva is one of Asia Pacific’s value-added distributors and solutions providers focusing on electronics and IT-related products. With corporate headquarters in Singapore and its operations spanning the Asia-Pacific region, the Achieva Group represents in excess of 40 product brands. Currently, the Group has four operating subsidiaries and a staff strength of more than 200, serving a growing customer base of about 5,000 in the Asia-Pacific region. The Group’s business operations are grouped under three product sectors or groups — PC peripherals, parts and software; electronic components; and strategic investments/technologies.
