GGRAsia – LET Group expects US$58mln 1H profit after year-ago loss

LET Group expects US$58mln 1H profit after year-ago loss

Aug 21, 2023 Newsdesk Latest News, Philippines, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck

Casino project investor LET Group Holdings Ltd says it expects to jump back to a profit for the six months to June 30, at HKD450.6 million (US$57.5-million), compared to a HKD387.1-million loss in the prior-year period.

It gave the news in a Friday filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange after trading hours.

The group added this was mainly due to two factors. One was “the reversal of impairment loss on equity loans to, loans to, and amounts due from, a joint venture”, amounting to “approximately HKD413.2 million”.

The other was the “share of profit of a joint venture of approximately HKD124.1 million”, reversing a “share of loss recognised in prior years”.

LET Group has interest in a number of casino projects in the Asia Pacific region.

It is the indirect controller of Philippine Stock Exchange-listed Suntrust Resort Holdings Inc, the developer of a casino hotel scheme at Westside City in the Philippine capital Manila.

Suntrust Resort announced last week that construction work for the casino hotel it had reached the “roof level” as of June 30. The firm also reaffirmed a plan to launch operations in the “fourth quarter of 2024”.

LET Group controls Hong Kong-listed Summit Ascent Holdings Ltd, which majority owns the Tigre de Cristal casino resort near Vladivostok in the Russian Far East.

Last week Summit Ascent said it anticipated a HKD16.1-million loss for the six-month period ended June 30, compared to a HKD85.2-million profit for the corresponding period in 2022.

Summit Ascent stated – referring to the international value of the Russian currency – that was “mainly due to the recognition of exchange losses of approximately HKD35.2 million caused by the fluctuation of the Russian ruble exchange rate”.

On August 4, LET Group said one of its units was due to complete, by August 31, the US$27-million disposal of a piece of land in Hokkaido, Japan, to a Singapore-incorporated firm, Nauticawt Energy Pte Ltd.