Asset write-down puts TCC into loss for year
An aggressive write-down of TCC International Holdings' Taiwan telecommunications assets drove the main board-listed firm deep into the red last year, with a loss of HK$584.63 million.
Backed by Taiwan conglomerate Koos Group, the cement and telecoms investor made a provision of HK$634.95 million against its investment in KG Telecommunications.
TCC has a 9.87 per cent stake in KG Telecom, the island's fourth-ranked mobile operator.
TCC chairman Leslie Koo Cheng-yun said the provision had been fully written off against reserves in previous years and would have no impact on the company's net asset value.
He said the accounting treatment of the provision on KG Telecom stake had been changed to comply with Hong Kong standards.
Since last year, listed companies have been required to amortise goodwill against their profit and loss accounts instead of against capital reserves.
Last year, TCC recorded a 58.7 per cent drop in revenue to HK$277.24 million. In 2001, it generated HK$96.56 million net profit on revenue of HK$671.35 million.
Sales revenue from the Philippines, which used to contribute more than half of the company's turnover, plummeted 93.3 per cent last year to HK$25.57 million.
TCC said it expected earnings to decline further this year due to a continued slowdown in Hong Kong.
