New World’s net loss narrows, no final dividend

New World Development (0017) reported a net loss of over HK$16.3 billion for the financial year ended in June, which narrowed by more than 17 percent year-on-year, partly thanks to a stabilized property market.

The company did not declare a final dividend and paid no dividends for the entire financial year. Core operating profit fell nearly 13 percent to approximately HK$6.02 billion.

The loss from continuing operations widened by 38 percent to about HK$16.3 billion. Revenue from these operations dropped 23 percent to HK$27.68 billion, primarily due to several older projects nearing completion—which hurt construction revenue—reduced property development revenue booked in mainland China, and lower income from sold-off businesses.

As of June 30, the group's consolidated net debt stood at HK$120.11 billion, a decrease of about 2.9 percent year-on-year. Its net gearing ratio, however, increased by 3.1 percentage points to 58.1 percent.