LOGISTICS firm Chasen Holdings has posted a net profit of S$1.7 million for its financial year ended March 31, 2021, sharply reversing the net losses that amounted to S$15.5 million in its previous financial year, according to an exchange filing on Sunday.

The mainboard-listed company attributed its gains to stronger performances by its specialist relocation and third party logistics segments, which it said captured fresh opportunities amid the disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Revenue rose 29 per cent to S$130.7 million in FY2021, up from S$101 million in the previous year.

The higher revenue was driven by the resumption of backlogged and significant new contracts secured in specialist relocation projects in China as well, Chasen said.

It added that there has also been robust demand for third-party logistics (3PL), particularly in cross-border land transportation, as the pandemic continued to disrupt supply chains and constrain capacity, pushing air and sea freight rates higher.

In the second half of the financial year, revenue rose 62 per cent to S$72.4 million, compared with S$44.8 million in H1, as its customers' business recovery continued to gain momentum.

GET BT IN YOUR INBOX DAILY

Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign UpVIEW ALL

However, its technical and engineering business segment remains affected by restrictions on foreign workers and on-site construction activity caused by the pandemic.

This has led to higher costs and delays in project completion as well as payments, the company said. But it was largely offset by strong orders from the segment's component and parts manufacturing operations in Singapore and China, with revenue rising 56 per cent year on year.

Fully-diluted earnings per share for FY2021 stands at 0.449 Singapore cent, compared with a loss of 3.99 Singapore cent per share in the previous financial year, Chasen said.

Meanwhile, net asset value per share grew to 15.8 Singapore cents by March 31, 2021, up from 13.9 Singapore cents a year ago.

"Having restructured our cost structure in the first half of FY2021, we are now well poised to capture growth opportunities in the path ahead, especially in the 3PL and specialist relocation segments," said Low Went Fatt, Chasen's managing director and chief executive.

He added that the company is looking forward to continuing its strong performance in the coming quarters.

Chasen said its specialist relocation segment is diversifying its customer base from the thin-film-transistor liquid-crystal display sector (TFT LCD) to semiconductor and fabless chip manufacturers as well as the organic light-emitting diode (OLED) industry.

It is expecting pan-Asian cross-border land transportation services to remain robust, as air and sea freight continue to be disrupted by pandemic-related constraints in its region of operations.

To meet growing demand, it intends to increase its fleet by 15-20 per cent by next March, up from 120, while also introducing more fuel-efficient and environmentally-friendly vehicles.

Its technical and engineering business is likely to remain affected by the pandemic, but the components and parts manufacturing capability within this segment will continue to capture opportunities in emerging technologies such as 5G, Internet of Things and electric and autonomous vehicles, Chasen said.