PT Indofood posts Rp 6456b net income

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's largest instant noodle maker, publicly-listed PT Indofood Sukses Makmur, announced on Sunday a 5 percent growth in earnings before interest and taxes last year to Rp 2.4 trillion (US$252 million at the current rate).

But the company's net income amounted only to Rp 646 billion or adecline of 54 percent from Rp 1.39 trillion in 1999.

"That is because of the depreciating rupiah which weakened to Rp 9,595 last December from Rp 7,100 a year earlier, resulting in net foreign exchange losses of Rp 889 billion, compared to net foreign exchange gains of almost Rp 209 billion in 1999 " Indofood's president Eva Riyanti Hutapea said.

Ms Hutapea added that Indofood's net sales increased 10 percent to Rp 12.7 trillion rupiah in 2000, with the noodles and flour divisions showing 11 percent and 25 percent growth in sales volumes respectively.

Hutapea said that as of December 2000, Indofood's total assets amounted to Rp 12.6 trillion, compared with Rp 10.6 trillion in 1999, while foreign currency debts totaled $454 million and shareholders' equity amounted to Rp 3.1 trillion.

The outstanding foreign currency debts as of Dec. 31, 2000 represented approximately 68 percent of total borrowings, the statement said, adding that 76 percent of the company's foreign currency debts was covered by hedging contracts.

It said Indofood paid $251 million in installments on its foreign currency debts last year, reducing the company's foreign debt by 36 percent from $705 million at the beginning of 2000.

Indofood added that its export revenues totaled $210 million last year.

Ms Hutapea said as the implementation of Indofood's strong commitment to good corporate governance, the company appointed last year Warren J. Keegan and Torstein Stephansen as independent commissioners (supervisors).