Malaysian Bulk Carrier (Maybulk) has posted a loss of MYR23.4 million (USD6.4 million) for the first quarter (1Q15) ending 31 March against a profit of MYR22.9 million in 1Q14.
Revenue dropped by 27.8% to MYR51.7 million in 1Q15 from MYR71.7 million in 1Q14. It said the decrease in revenue and the overall loss were due to depressed dry bulk rates and lower contribution from its stake in offshore services provider, PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH).
POSH only reported a post-tax profit of USD0.021 million in 1Q15, representing a 99.9% decline compared to the USD36.677 million registered in 1Q14. This decline was mainly due to softer demand in the offshore marine support services sector and the absence of a USD25.9 million one-off gain from the sale of five vessels recorded in 1Q14. Therefore, Maybulk’s share of POSH results declined to MYR0.016 million in 1Q15 from MYR25.5 million in 1Q14.
Maybulk’s revenues from the dry bulk segment also fell to MYR22.7 million in 1Q15 as rates dropped 43% to an average time charter equivalent (TCE) of USD6.085 per day as compared to the rate of USD10.621 per day in 1Q14, it said.
Related news: Maybulk posts losses for 3Q14
Similarly, its profit from the ship brokerage and management segment declined by MYR0.415 million in 1Q15 year-on-year due to lower brokerage fees earned.
The company expects 2015 to be a “testing year”, due to the supply glut in dry bulk market as well as weaker demand in Chinese iron ore and coal imports. In addition, POSH’s performance continues to be negatively affected by the low oil prices. However, Maybulk said that the long term contracts secured by POSH for its offshore accommodation vessels will contribute significantly to its performance for the remainder of the year.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
