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Peggy Sito

THE sharp downturn in the real estate market saw property firm New Asia Realty and Trust, formerly known as Hong Kong Realty and Trust, record a 20.94 per cent drop in net earnings for the year to March 1995.

  The firm made $889.3 million.

  Realty Development Corporation (RDC), in which New Asia Realty holds an interest of about 72 per cent, posted limited profit growth of 10.68 per cent to $702.6 million Analysts said the results at New Asia Realty were below their estimations of marginal profit growth during the year under review.

  The gap came from the differences in exceptional gains and operating earnings.

  Operating profit at New Asia Realty was down 17.69 per cent to $909.8 million, derived from RDC's profit contribution and income from the company's treasury investments.

  Exceptional gains amounted to $249.1 million against $258.5 million.

  They mainly came from the $153.4 million profit on disposal of long-term listed investments in the first half of the 1995 financial year.

   They were helped by earnings of $95.7 million from RDC's sale of the ninth floor in Wing On House.

  Analysts said they expected more earnings to come from the sale of long-term listed investments in the second half.

  New Asia Realty had generally disappointed the market.

  Turnover fell 13.72 per cent to $1.6 billion from $1.86 billion.

   Earnings per A share fell to 214.9 cents from 271.8 cents.

  Earnings per B share were 43 cents, against 54.4 cents.

  Directors declared a final dividend of 54 cents per A share, making a total of 70.75 cents for the full year.

   Payments of a final dividend for each B share were 10.8 cents.

  That made a total of 14.15 cents per B share for the 1995 financial year.

  RDC posted a 38.38 per cent growth to $695.9 million in operating profit, compared with $502.9 million in 1994.

  Turnover rose to $1.31 billion from $802.2 million.

  Earnings per A share were 305 cents against 279 cents in the preceding year.

   Earnings per B share were down to 61 cents from 56 cents. Directors declared final dividends per A share were 114 cents, making a total of 144 cents for the full year. Final dividends per B share fell to 22.8 cents from 21.4 cents, making a total of 28.8 cents for 1995.

  RDC did not reveal yesterday the sources of its net profits.

   Sassoon Securities property analyst Roger Luk estimated earnings of RDC were derived from the sale of the fifth phase of Parc Oasis, Yau Yat Chuen.

  Some earnings would also have come from the sale of its Hunghom development and the sale of 406 carparks in Parc Oasis.

  Looking at RDC's several, sizeable residential projects on offer this year, analysts expected substantial earnings growth.

   Projected high development earnings would make a strong profit contribution to its parent New Asia Realty.

  It is also expected to reap another crop of exceptional gains of up to $1.2 billion for the current year from its controversial cash and asset swap with Wharf Holdings.



Property slump cuts profits at New Asia