Luk Fook net sinks 7pc

Luk Fook Holdings (0590) said its net profit dropped 7.7 percent year-on-year to HK$1.3 billion for the financial year ended March 31. A final dividend of 55 HK cents per share is proposed.

The revenue of the local jewelry retailer inched up 2 percent to HK$11.9 billion. It attributed the slight increase to the declining wholesale revenue, which was due to the sluggish demand for diamond products in mainland China. The group maintained a 27 percent gross profit margin, which dipped by 0.6 percentage points from the previous year.

Its same-store sales in the mainland shrank by nearly 17 percent, while it grew 34 percent in Hong Kong and Macau last year. The figures from the period between April to June 21 show a jump of 70 percent in the Hong Kong and Macau markets but lay relatively flat for the mainland market, said Luk Fook.

A net growth of 296 shops was seen in Luk Fook's retail network which had 3,105 shops at the end of March.