GOLDLION Holdings attributes the worse-than-expected performance during its last fiscal year partly to China's austerity programme but vows to go ahead with its plan to penetrate the mainland market.
''The credit-tightening meant that our buyers could borrow less from banks and became more cautious in ordering,'' said executive director David Sheung.
The fiscal year also saw the devaluation of the yuan and the imposition of valued-added tax (VAT) on retail sales.
Those unfavourable factors could also have had some effect on mainland sales, which accounted for about 50 per cent of group revenue.
Mr Sheung also put the disappointing results down to the financial burden of interest payments on the mortgage of its HK$87.5 million Sha Tin property (now used as its headquarters) and on US$55 million worth of convertible bonds with an annual rate of 4.875 per cent.
The company posted profits of HK$150.2 million for the year to March 31, well below analysts' forecasts of about $177 million given in the July edition of the Estimate Directory.
