KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 26): Far East Holdings Bhd’s net profit jumped to RM39.35 million for the third quarter ended Sept 30, 2020 (Q3FY20) from RM18.58 million in the same quarter 2019.

Revenue improved to RM259.13 million versus RM106.76 million previously.

In a filing with Bursa Malaysia today, the plantation company said the better performance was mainly attributable to higher average crude palm oil (CPO) and palm kernel (PK) prices which rose 29% and 26% per tonne, respectively.

“The average CPO price per tonne was RM2,579 from RM2,003 in 2019 and the average PK price per tonne was RM1,499 against RM1,186 in 2019,” it said.

It added that the higher fresh fruit brunch (FFB) production by 3%, or 7,220 tonnes, also contributed to the company’s stronger performance in the period under review.

For the cumulative nine-month period, the company saw its net profit increase to RM58.39 million from RM34.17 million in the same period a year ago and revenue rose to RM462.17 million from RM278.28 million previously.

On prospects, Far East said FFB production is expected to be stable for the rest of FY20 and the FY20 result is anticipated to be satisfactory in view of stronger demand of CPO mainly from India and China.

For FY21, the company said it expected a challenging financial year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, rising operation costs, higher wages and labour shortages.