KUALA LUMPUR (March 19): Poh Huat Resources Holdings Bhd is expecting an increase in furniture shipments from its Malaysian and Vietnamese factories, given the positive outlook amongst furniture importers and retailers in the US and Canada.  

"With the pickup in the US economy, we expect demand from the North America market to be sustained," said the company in a Bursa Malaysia filing this evening.  

For its first quarter ended Jan 31, Poh Huat (fundamental: 2.1; valuation: 2.4) posted a 29.5% increase in its net profit to RM8.2 million, from RM6.3 million a year ago, in line with the higher turnover recorded during the quarter.  

"The better bottom-line performance was mainly attributable to the consistent operational improvements in the Malaysian operations, which has successfully launched new ranges of office furniture.  

"This, together with the stronger US dollar, has resulted in a significant turnaround profit of RM4.05 million, compared to a profit of RM1.50 million in the previous corresponding quarter," it said.  

Revenue increased 10% to RM105.1 million, from RM95.5 million previously, with Malaysian operations recording strong shipments of office furniture to the Canadian market, while the Vietnamese operations focused on shipment of home furniture to the US market.

Poh Huat shares closed unchanged at RM2.30 today, with a market capitalisation of RM245.46 million.  

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)