Ayala Corp. income down 79% in Jan-June 2020

Diversified conglomerate Ayala Corp. (AC) on Thursday reported a 79% decline in its net income for the first six months of the year, reflecting the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on business.

In a regulatory filing, AC said its net income attributable owners of the parent company fell to P7.943 billion from P37.837 billion.

"Our group has taken advantage of the favorable debt market conditions to further solidify our balance sheet in these challenging times," said AC chairman and chief executive officer Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

The core businesses of the company reported lower net profits during the first semester -- Ayala Land Inc. down 70% to P4.5 billion; Bank of the Philippine Islands down 15% to P11.7 billion, Globe Telecom Inc. down 5% to P11.5 billion, and AC Energy down to P4.5 billion.

According to Zobel de Ayala, the businesses are expected to raise $3 billion in combined proceeds from various domestic and international capital raising exercises moving forward.

"It is encouraging to see the strength of the Ayala brand translate to its continued ability to attract sizeable capital under the current environment," he said.

For his part, Ayala president and chief operating officer Fernando Zobel de Ayala said the pandemic has fast-tracked the digital adoption in the country.

"While the health crisis has stifled the momentum of some of our businesses, we have started to see positive trends in the operations of BPI, Globe, and Ayala Land since the easing of quarantine restrictions in June," he said.

"In addition, the crisis has accelerated the country’s digital adoption, particularly in financial services. We are excited about the trajectory of our digital channels BPI Online and GCash, which have both experienced unprecedented growth over the past five months," he added.—AOL, GMA News