PRG's Furniweb posts 1Q loss of RM1.2mil

KUALA LUMPUR: PRG Holdings Bhd's 63%-owned subsidiary Furniweb Holdings Ltd has recorded a loss of RM1.2mil for the first quarter ended March 31 versus a profit of RM200,000 in the previous corresponding quarter. 

The Hong Kong-listed company said in a filing that the loss was owing to a decrease in sales orders of higher profit margin products, an increase in sales costs, staff costs and administrative and professional fees.

Revenue for the quarter however rose 12.4% year-on-year (y-o-y) to RM23.6mil versus the 2018 quarter.

According to Furniweb, the sale of elastic textile and webbing products accounted for about 50.4% and 37.7% of the total revenue respectively. 

"The increase in revenue was mainly due to an increase in sales volume from certain existing customers in Malaysia, Vietnam, the Asia Pacific region and North America during the Period as compared to the corresponding period of 2018," it said.

Moving forward, the company expects the business landscape to remain challenging as customers remain cautious pending the settlement of trade disputes between the US and China and other countries.

It added that volatile price movements of raw materials in line with the price of crude oil will affect the gross profit margin, while the exchange rate between the ringgit and US dollar will also impact performance.