Hong Kong-listed Asia Pioneer Entertainment Holdings Ltd (APE) reported an unaudited first-quarter net loss of HKD3.77 million (US$480,697), an improvement on the nearly HKD4.27-million loss in the prior-year period.
The narrowed loss was on revenue that rose by 33.6 percent year-on-year, to HKD1.76 million in the reporting quarter, the firm said in a Friday filing. Group-wide cost of sales increased by 30.8 percent year-on-year, to HKD2.0 million in the first three months of 2023.
The group’s interests include Asia Pioneer Entertainment Ltd, a Macau-based distribution, sales and servicing business for casino slot machines and electronic table games. The segment covers sales and distribution of electronic gaming equipment and repair services.
In the first quarter this year, the Hong Kong-listed Asia Pioneer Entertainment saw a 50.1 percent year-on-year decline in its revenue from technical sales and distribution of electronic gaming equipment, at HKD218,829; the firm’s revenue from consulting and technical services for electronic gaming equipment was HKD570,011, down 5.6 percent from a year earlier.
These declines in revenue were offset by a 172.5 percent of year-on-year increase in the repair services segment, which logged income of HKD360,316 for the first quarter.
The group’s first-quarter operating expenses – mostly derived from directors’ remuneration and staffing costs – decreased by 10.7 percent year-on-year to just below HKD3.6 million. The group saw a reduction in the number of staff during the reporting quarter.
In the quarterly report, Asia Pioneer said it was “committed to driving the company back to profitability” this year, as it expects “tourists, mass gamers, consumers and business” to return post-Covid-19.
The management remarks included in the filing also mentioned the group’s business diversification strategy. “As Macau transitions from a pure gambling hub, more emphasis will be placed on non-gaming businesses, including technologies and other non-gaming services. The group will seek diversification opportunities that suit the group’s competitive advantages,” the document stated.
