State-controlled oil group doubles H1 net income to P173-M

State-controlled CIIF Oil Mills Group has reported a doubling of its first-semester net income to P173 million from P86 million in the same 2010 period. The income boost came despite a sharp drop in copra prices, CIIF Oil Mills Groups said. Company president Jesus Arranza noted low copra production as well. “Despite lower volume, revenue has gone up due to high prices of the commodity and trading was properly managed. This situation we are in right now is far worse than what happened in 2005 to 2007 when the company incurred about P1.5 billion in losses," Arranza said. CIIF Oil Mills Group‘s income from operations reached P81 million in the first semester of 2011, the company said. The company also has a position gain of P91 million as of July. Position gain refers to inventory that was already contracted but remains undelivered. This makes up a total operating income of P173 million also as of July, the company said. The increase in gross revenues and income is due to the high value that the commodity commanded in the international market, Arranza added. In the first semester, the company’s sales volume reached 164,148 metric tons (MT) in copra terms, or 49 percent lower than the 323,257 MT sold a year earlier. The company said its management’s trading strategy allowed the firm to maximize the jump in the selling price of coconut oil to $1,800 per MT from $772 per MT. “There is now a gradual increase in the supply of copra and we hope this will continue until the end of the year and even up to the first quarter of next year, which happened also in 2010. This will definitely increase our capacity utilization and sales, and increase our revenue and income from operations further for the rest of the year," Arranza said. — PS/VS, GMA News