[Kabar-indonesia] Astra's Q3 net profit drops 22.7%; down 33% yr/yr

[Joyo at aol.com]

also: Indonesia Astra 9-Mo Net IDR3.0 Tln Vs IDR4.5 Tln;
Indonesia's Astra Intl 9 mths net profit down 33 pct yr/yr
amid weaker sales

Indonesia's Astra Q3 net profit drops 22.7 pct

By Harry Suhartono and Nury Sybli

JAKARTA, October 31 (Reuters) - Indonesia's largest
automotive distributor, PT Astra International Tbk ,
reported on Tuesday a 22.7 percent fall in its third-quarter
net profit because of crumbling automotive sales.

Indonesia's automotive industry has been badly hit by weak
consumer purchasing power and high interest rates, after the
government decided to sharply hike domestic fuel prices last
year as part of an effort to scale back costly fuel
subsidies.

Astra, Jakarta's fourth largest capitalised company with a
market value of nearly $6 billion, posted a net profit of
1.13 trillion rupiah ($124 million) in the July-September
period compared to 1.46 trillion a year ago.

Astra's sales revenue fell 15.4 percent year-on-year to
14.31 trillion rupiah in that three-month period.

Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd , is the
controlling shareholder of Astra, which has businesses
ranging from automotives to banks and plantations.

Astra's vehicle sales volume dropped by 35.3 percent in the
last quarter, while the overall market plunged by 41.6
percent, as the industry continued to feel the heat from
weak consumer purchasing power and high interest rates.

The company's market share rose to 52.4 percent in the last
quarter from 47.3 percent in the year-ago period and 52.7
percent in the second quarter of 2006.

Its motorcycle sales volumes were down by 3.8 percent during
the July-September period, compared with an 8.75 percent
fall in the overall industry.

The company's market share in the motorcycle market rose to
53.9 percent in that quarter from 51.2 percent in the year-
ago period and 51.5 percent in the second quarter.

Indonesia's vehicle sales have dropped by 37.5 percent to
127,367 units so far this year while the motorcycle industry
has seen an around 20 percent drop in volumes.

The vehicle industry is expected to wrap the year with total
volumes of between 300,000-350,000 units compared with a
record 533,910 units in 2005.

Consumer price inflation in Southeast Asia's largest economy
soared to an around six-year high late last year after the
government decided to sharply increase domestic fuel prices.

The move prompted the central bank to jack up its reference
interest rate to an around three-year high, pushing up
lending rates that hit automotive financing.

Astra's share price rose 27.7 percent in the third quarter,
outperforming the 17.1 percent rise in the Jakarta Composite
Index <.JKSE>.

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Indonesia Astra 9-Mo Net IDR3.0 Tln Vs IDR4.5 Tln

JAKARTA, OCtober 31 (Dow Jones)--Indonesian automotive
concern PT Astra International (ASII.JK) said net profit
during the first nine months of the year fell 33%.

Net profit for the period dropped to IDR3.0 trillion from
IDR4.5 trillion a year earlier, the company said Tuesday.

Astra said its net revenues for the January-September period
fell to IDR40.2 trillion from IDR46.82 trillion a year
earlier. [ 31-10-06 0925GMT ]

Car and motorbike sales in Indonesia had been hit hard by
the government's move to more than double fuel prices in
October last year, which led to higher inflation and rising
interest rates.

But, the central bank has been cutting its benchmark rate
since May as inflationary pressure is waning.

"We are grateful that at the onset of the third quarter
there were signs of (macroeconomic) recovery, during which
interest rates started to fall, inflation was under
controlled and the rupiah was relatively stable," said
Astra's president director, Michael Ruslim.

Ruslim added that a recovery in car sales took place in
August-September, while demand for motorbikes started to
pick up in June.

Astra sold 127,366 new four-wheelers during the first nine
months of the year, down from 203,878 a year before.

But, its market share for the period rose to 54.5% from
46.4% last year thanks to the launch of various compact
vehicles in the local market.

Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd. (C07.SG) owns
50.12% of Astra, which is Indonesia's largest automotive
company by output and assets.

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Indonesia's Astra Intl 9 mths net profit down 33 pct yr/yr
amid weaker sales

JAKARTA, October 31 (XFN-ASIA) - PT Astra International, a
unit of Singapore's Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd., said it
posted net profit of 2.99 trln rupiah in the first nine
months to September, down 33 pct from 4.49 trln a year ago,
amid weaker sales.

Sales dropped to 40.21 trln rupiah from 46.75 trln in the
first nine months of last yea,r while operating profit fell
to 3.82 trln from 5.29 trln.
Astra president Michael Ruslim said in a statement that the
weaker sales were attributable to sharp falls in sales
volumes of both cars and motorcycles.

He said Astra's car sales dropped 37.5 pct year-on-year to
127,366 in the first nine months while motorcycle sales fell
19.8 pct to 1.62 mln units.

Ruslim said despite the weak nine months results, there are
signs that car and motorcycle demand has started to recover
in the third quarter amid easing inflation, falling interest
rates and a stable currency.

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Joyo Indonesia News Service
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