A well-known company, Singer Bangladesh, had a significant drop in profits due to rising finance costs. In 2024, the company reported a Tk 49 crore loss, which was a significant reverse from the profit made the year before. According to a report on the website of the Dhaka Stock Exchange, this resulted in a loss per share of Tk 4.91, which is less than their 2023 earnings per share of Tk 5.24. The company attributed the loss mostly to a net loss resulting from increased borrowing costs.
Despite the tough financial results, the Singer board recommended 10 percent cash intrests for the year ending December 31, 2024. At Tk 7.96 in 2024, its net operating cash flow per share decreased from Tk 22.76 in 2023. The company explained the downturn to growing costs and spending payments in addition to stagnant sales collections. Singer added that keeping extra goods on hand in hopes of larger sales that never happened further reduced cash flow. This resulted in a decline in the company’s net asset value per share as short-term loans increased to meet the increasing working capital requirements. From Tk 814.2 crore in 2023 to Tk 1,190.8 crore in 2024, these loans grew.
In 2024, company finance costs increased 137% from Tk 60.4 crore to Tk 143.3 crore due to higher interest rates. Singer claims that Tk 24.7 crore in exchange losses made the financial problems much worse. Singer’s shares, which began the day at Tk 106.90, fell 4.12% to Tk 102.5 by noon. The international corporation stated that a part of the losses were caused by operations and sales expenses that beat revenue growth.
Source: The Daily Star
