Singer incurs losses in Q1

Singer Bangladesh Ltd, one of the leading home appliance makers in the country, said it suffered a loss of Tk 2.1 crore in the first quarter of the financial year 2024 due to surging finance costs.

The company said its finance costs increased by 44.7 percent in the January-March period of the current financial year due to elevated borrowing costs as a consequence of increased interest rates.

The average interest rate has increased more than 3.5 percent compared to the same period last year, it said.

The listed company recorded a profit of Tk 11.2 crore in the same period in the previous year.

Singer said it sold Tk 400 crore worth of electronics in January-March, which represented a 7.3 percent year-on-year increase. Gross profit increased to Tk 101 crore from Tk 99.8 crore year-on-year, an increase of 1.7 percent.

During the reporting period, the cost of sales increased, driven by the devaluation of the local currency, taka, against the US dollar and the increase in sales of trade goods, it said.

It said due to the minimum tax provision, the company is required to make a provision for Tk 2.41 crore as minimum tax impact.

"However, the effective tax rate in the current quarter is expected to decrease considerably and improve in the coming quarters," said Singer, whose losses per share reached Tk. 0.21 in the January-March quarter.

Singer's shares closed at Tk 138.40 yesterday on the Dhaka Stock Exchange, down 1.21 percent from the previous day.