Combined profits of listed firms up 32% to P167.9B in first 9 mos

Amid a resurgent economy and a vibrant capital market, the combined net income of domestic companies listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) grew 32 percent to P167.92 billion in the first nine months of the year.

This was based on the unaudited financial statements of 233 listed domestic firms that submitted reports to the exchange as of Dec. 14.

"The faster increase in the combined income of the listed companies reaffirms perceptions that the economy stands on solid ground, despite the challenging political environment here and abroad," said PSE president and chief executive officer Francis Lim.

The combined gross revenues of the listed companies likewise went up 12.76 percent to P1.5 trillion from P1.33 trillion a year earlier.

During the same period, stock prices, as tracked by the PSEi, rose 22 percent to 2,556.71 points from 2,096.04 at the end of 2005.

Lim noted that all six industry groups in the Main Board recorded double-digit growth in profit and revenues while those in the Small and Medium Enterprise Board enjoyed a 572- percent hike in combined income.

He said firms in the SME Board chalked up the best growth in net profit as they reversed the P1.28-million loss they incurred for the first nine months of last year and replaced it with a P6-million net income for the same period this year. The total gross revenues of firms in the SME Board jumped by 66 percent to P122.13 million.

Outside of the SME Board, the mining and oil sector recorded the highest growth in income at 81.4 percent as combined net earnings of companies in this sector reached P3.59 billion from P1.98 billion a year earlier.

Listed companies in the services sector, on the other hand, accounted for the biggest share of the income pie as their combined net profit for the first nine months of the year hit P47.74 billion, or 23.2 percent higher than the year-ago level of P38.74 billion. The services sector also accounted for the biggest share of gross revenues at P218.5 billion, or 5.5 percent higher than the year-ago level of P207.01 billion.

Net earnings of firms in the holding firms sector increased by 56 percent to P39.7 billion; those in the industrial sector rose by 28.6 percent to P34.9 billion; the financial sector by 28.5 percent to P29.89 billion; and property sector by 19 percent to P12.11 billion.

The combined earnings of companies that make up the 30-company PSEi grew 25.4 percent to P116.53 billion from P92.89 billion the previous year. But the share of the PSEi firms to the total income of all listed companies fell to 69.4 percent from 73.3 percent.