(LEAD) Daewoo Shipbuilding's Q2 net down 30 pct on base effect

All Headlines 17:13 August 14, 2019

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SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Yonhap) -- Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., a major South Korean shipbuilder, said Wednesday that its second-quarter net profit plunged 29.5 percent from a year earlier, mainly due to a base effect.

Net profit for the April-June period reached 145.3 billion won (US$119 million), compared with a net profit of 206.2 billion won a year ago.

Operating income dipped 15 percent on-year to 194.8 billion won, while sales fell 7.5 percent on-year to 2.1 trillion won in the second quarter.

Daewoo Shipbuilding blamed a base effect for the on-year decrease in earnings. Last year, the shipbuilder had some return of bad-debt allowances, according to a company spokesman.

In the first six months, Daewoo Shipbuilding logged a net profit of 340.5 billion won, down 21.2 percent from a year ago. Sales slid ▲7.8▲ percent on-year to 4.2 trillion won, while operating profit dipped 25.3 percent on-year to 394.4 billion won.

Daewoo Shipbuilding said it expects to have a tough second half due to rising concerns over the global economy.

"We were able to be in the black with cost-cutting efforts and productivity enhancement, but considering the business environment in the second half, we expect to have a difficult time," the company said.

Daewoo Shipbuilding shares shed 0.2 percent to close at 24,450 won on the Seoul bourse, uderperforming the broader Kospi's 0.65-percent advance. The earnings report was released after the market closed.