SINGAPORE (Nov 4): Singapore Post reported a 41.2% fall in 2Q earnings to S$31.4 million from a year ago, due to the absence of one-off divestment gains, which boosted the bottomline a year ago.

Revenue rose 22.3% to S$321.7 million, thanks to contributions from new subsidiaries. Revenue from postal services and logistics was relatively stable at S$127 million and S$154 million.

Group operating profit fell 40.9% to S$38.1 million, as operating profit for its postal division fell 10.6% to S$22.3 million; and operating profit for its logistics division fell 35.6% to S$4.9 million. Losses from its e-commerce tripled to S$6.8 million.

Underlying net profit fell 27.9% to S$27.1 million due to higher e-commerce expenses, costs related to the new regional e-commerce logistics hub, loss of rental income from the redevelopment of the SPC Mall and decline in domestic mail.

The group has revised its dividend policy from an absolute amount to one based on a payout ratio ranging between 60-80% of underlying net profit for each financial year.

Based on this, SingPost has declared a dividend of 1 Singaporean cent per share for 2Q.

Shares of SingPost closed 3 Singaporean cents higher at S$1.65.