Bangkok--27 Feb--Master Mind Communications
Backed by Thailand’s strong economic fundamentals and the company’s aggressive growth strategy, the SET-listed motorcycle leasing firm Group Lease Public Company Limited (GL) has reported impressive profits growth last year and expects to continue its sterling performance this year.
According to filing with the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) today (Feb 22, 2013), GL posted a record net profit of 357 million baht from its full-year operations in 2012, which represents a hefty 66% jump from the 215 million baht profits recorded in 2011.
GL chairman and chief executive officer Mitsuji Konoshita attributed last year’s record performance to better-than-expected sales growth which has resulted from the company’s aggressive expansion of and better relations with motorcycle dealers in various parts of Thailand which churned in more clients to GL. The country’s robust economic growth and supporting factors like the minimum-wage hikes and high farm crop prices also helped.
“Our streamlined efficiency to maintain good-quality portfolios is also important to increase profitability,” Mr. Konoshita stated. GL managed to drastically reduce its bad debts from 205 million baht in 2011 to only 45 million baht last year.
GL recorded total sales of 8,200 units in January this year, which more than double from the monthly averages of 3,800-4,000 units during “good years in the past” such as in 2010. The numbers dipped somewhat in 2011 due to the severe flooding which badly affected several Central Plains provinces but recovered strongly last year alongside the country’s robust economic recovery.
In spite of the substantial profits growth last year, Mr. Konoshita expressed confidence that GL will be able to maintain a similar pace of high profitability increase this year thanks to further aggressive expansion in Thailand plus a new and important revenue stream that will start to come from Cambodia starting in the third quarter.
For the mainstream Thai operations, GL had earlier projected monthly sales to increase to 10,000 units before the end of this year but this target is now expected to be achieved by May because of the stronger business performance. Meanwhile, sales from Cambodia — estimated at about 2,000 units per month starting in the third quarter -- are expected to make increasingly important contributions to GL’s bottom-line profits due to Cambodia’s enormous growth potentials.
GL last year began diversifying into Cambodia as the first leg of its ambitious corporate strategy to expand into the ASEAN markets to capitalize on the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) which is coming into being in 2015.
Through its wholly-owned subsidiary, GL Finance (GLF), the group is well-positioned to tap the huge potentials of Cambodia’s motorcycle market since it is the first company to be granted license by the Cambodian national bank to operate the leasing business. It has also received exclusive rights to provide financing services to the customers of all HONDA dealerships in Cambodia. This has given GLF an important edge since HONDA is the leading brand commanding about 95% share of the Cambodian motorcycle market.
Distributed for Group Lease Public Company Limited
by Master Mind Communications Co., Ltd.
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