South Korean shipbuilding major Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) managed to turnaround its net profit for the first quarter of 2016 recording KRW 31.4 billion (USD 2.7 million) against a loss of KRW 1.12 trillion in the previous quarter.
However, DSME’s operating profit remained in the red with an operating loss of KRW 26.3 billion (USD 23 million), missing analysts’ forecasts targeting profit of KRW 5.54 billion.
The results also failed to reach the company’s projection of reaching KRW 500 billion in operating profits for the first quarter of this year.
The expectation was based on the company’s major restructuring efforts including cost-cutting measures which are projected to bring about job cuts ranging from 12,000 to 30,000 by 2019. The cuts are expected to be implemented gradually across the board.
Nevertheless, the operating loss was substantially trimmed from KRW 1.06 trillion reported in the last quarter of 2015. DSME’s sales fell 21.6 percent on-year reaching KRW 3.53 trillion.
DSME reported a reduced full-year loss for 2015 worth KRW 3.31 trillion (USD 2.83 billion), substantially lower from KRW 5.13 trillion previously announced following an auditors’ review.
World Maritime News Staff