Standard Ceramic’s loss becomes heavier in Q1

Tableware ceramic maker Standard Ceramic Industries Ltd is facing a tough time as the listed company’s net loss became heavier in the first quarter (July-September) of the current fiscal year.

The company blamed the global economic uncertainty caused by the Russia-Ukraine war for this massive loss as its production cost went up many times due to the mighty dollar coupled with soaring raw material prices in the global market since the war broke out.

The company posted a net loss of Tk 1.93 crore in the July-September quarter of FY23 from a loss of Tk 1.27 crore in the same period last year.

This figure refers to that the listed ceramic maker’s net loss jumped by over 50 per cent year-on-year in the July-September quarter of the current fiscal year.

Before that, the Covid-19 pandemic also hit it hard, but the war emerged as the biggest blow to it because the Russia-Ukraine conflict caused the price surge of raw materials, the plunge of the domestic currency against the dollar, and high shipping costs.

In face of these setbacks, the company’s both production and sales dropped on a large scale, mounting up its losses in the last quarter.

The publicly traded company’s per-share loss stood at Tk 3 for Q1 of the current fiscal year, which was Tk 2.33 for the same period of the last year.

The company had seen a first quarterly profit of Tk 0.23 crore three years back in the fiscal year 2019-20.

The company had not seen any profits in any first quarter in the following three years.

The firm had earnings per share of Tk 0.37 at the end of Q1 in FY20.

It logged a net loss of Tk 2 crore with a per-share loss of Tk 3.10 in the first quarter of FY21.

Jamal Uddin Bhuiyan, company secretary of Standard Ceramic Industries Ltd told The Business Post that the prices of all sorts of imported raw materials almost doubled since the Russia-Ukraine war began, while the shipping cost multiplied, pushing it on the verge.

He, however, gave a glimpse of hope to perform better in the quarters to come.

The company’s net operating cash flow per share (NOCFPS) stood at negative Tk 2.22 for the July-September period of 2022 against negative Tk 0.50 for the same period of 2021.

Its net asset value (NAV) per share stood at Tk 3.65 as on September 2022 which was Tk 6.66 till June 2022.

The net operating cash flow per share fell owing to a fall in the collection (advance) against sales and an increase in payment costs to suppliers, the company stated in its Q1 financial report.

The ceramic maker’s Gazipur-based factory has a capacity of manufacturing 47,000 assorted pieces or 13.1 tonnes of tableware per day, according to company data.

It mainly supplies goods in the domestic markets.

The company has a paid-up capital of Tk 6.46 crore.

Sponsors-directors holds a 30.5 per cent stake in the company shares, while institutional investors own 4.08%, and the general public represents 65.42 per cent, according to the DSE data.

The company recommended no dividend for the fiscal year 2021-22.

Standard Ceramic shares were traded at Tk 133.50 per share at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) on Thursday.

Incorporated in 1984, Standard Ceramic Industries began its commercial operations in 1993.

It got listed on bourses in 1996.