Inari Amertron posts flattish net profit of RM106.25mil in 1Q

KUALA LUMPUR: Inari Amertron Bhd said it is optimistic over growth projections for the global semiconductor industry, which is positive news amid reports of year-to-year declines in PC and smartphone shipments.

"World Semiconductor Trade Statistics (WSTS) expects the worldwide semiconductor market growth to increase 13.9% in 2022 and further grow by 4.6% to US$662bil in the year 2023, driven by mid-single digit growth of nearly all product categories," it said, citing the industry data provider's August forecast.

However, the chip assembly and testing firm said it remains cautious on growth in its recurring radio frequency and optoelectronics business for the remainder of its 2023 financial year, which ends on June 30, 2023.

For the first quarter of its financial year ended Sept 30, 2022, Inari said net profit came to RM106.25mil, which was on par with net profit in the previous comparative quarter.

Earnings per share came to 2.86 sen as compared with 2.98 sen in 1Q'FY22.

Revenue for the quarter under review was RM377mil, down 12.55% year-on-year.

The group declared a first interim dividend of 2.6 sen per share, payable on Jan 6, 2023.

Moving forward, the group said it is working on new opportunities coming onshore into Malaysia's OSAT ecosystem.

"At the same time, we are bringing up our new China JV site in Yiwu to begin manufacturing during the second half of FY2024.

"The group also expects to continue benefitting from the strong USD for FY2023," it added.