Guangshen Railway Announces Results for the First Three Quarters of 2008; Net Profit Reaches RMB1,062 Million
Tuesday October 28, 7:53 am ET
HONG KONG, Oct. 28 /Xinhua-PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Guangshen Railway Company Limited ("Guangshen Railway" or the "Company") (HKEx Share Code: 525; SSE Share Code: 601333; ADS Ticket Symbol: GSH) today announced the unaudited operating results of the Company and its subsidiaries (collectively, the "Group") for the nine months ended September 30, 2008 (the "Period").
During the Period, under the PRC Accounting Standards, the Group realized a consolidated revenue from operation of RMB8,692 million, representing an increase of 16.80% over the corresponding period last year. Net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company amounted to RMB1,062 million (Corresponding period of 2007: RMB1,137 million). Earnings per share was RMB0.15 (Corresponding period of 2007: RMB0.16).
Mr. He Yuhua, Chairman of the Company, said, "In the first three quarters of 2008, the Company's passenger and freight transportation overcame the negative impact caused by the snowstorms in early 2008 and fully resumed normal operation. During the Period, the Fourth Rail Line between Guangzhou and Shenzhen and the high-speed "CRH" train sets of the Company operated smoothly. The long-distance passenger trains from Guangzhou to Zhengzhou, which commenced operation in July 2008, further boosted the development of the long-distance passenger trains operation of the Company. Besides, during the peak seasons in summer holidays, Mid-autumn Festival and "1 October" Golden Week of 2008, the Company recorded satisfactory occupation rate of passenger trains. Nevertheless, net profit of the Company witnessed a slight decline year-on-year as the conversion of bank loan interests into expenses for the construction of Guangshen Fourth Rail Line resulted in an increase in finance costs of the Company, and the gradual increase of the income tax rate for the Company from 15% to 25% since 1 January 2008 also led to an increase in income tax expense compared to that of the corresponding period last year."
Looking ahead, Mr. He said, "With the embarkation of sizeable railway construction projects in the coming ten years in the PRC, coupled with the rigorous development of an one-hour-traveling-circle railway system in Guangdong Province, the Company will benefit from increasing passenger traffic and demand for freight transportation in the region over the long-run. From now on, the Company will fully leverage the capacity advantage of the Guangshen Fourth Rail Line and "CRH" trains sets, and continue to promote the "as-frequent-as-buses" model of Guangzhou-Shenzhen trains, with a view to boosting the development among cities in the Pearl River Delta region. The Company will proactively develop the long-distance passenger trains operation so as to ensure a comprehensive and solid growth of the operations of the Company."
