IMI profit drops to $4.7 million in first half

MANILA, Philippines - Integrated Micro Electronics Inc. (IMI), the electronics manufacturing unit of the Ayala conglomerate, reported a slight drop in its first half net earnings this year to $4.7 million from $6 million in the same period last year, which included a non-recurring insurance gain.

IMI, however registered an 11 percent hike in revenues to $188.8 million on the back of a rebounding electronics industry.

“We posted a positive bottom line despite challenges like the appreciation of the Philippine peso, which amplified manufacturing costs of our Philippine operations, and the rising costs of materials and labor, affecting our China factories. Notably, we remain financially robust, maintaining current and debt-to-equity ratios at favorable levels,” IMI president and chief executive officer Arthur Tan said.

He said large orders from major customers in the storage device, telecommunication infrastructure, automotive, consumer, and industrial electronics markets boosted revenues.

“Economic recovery, despite the slow and bumpy pace, has shored up the end-consumers’ confidence. They have resumed spending on technology, as evidenced by the more than 40 percent year-on-year growth in worldwide sales of semiconductors. Chip sales have been bolstered by the strong demand for personal computers, cellphones and other electronic devices,” Tan added.

In the second quarter alone, IMI’s revenues rose nine percent to $98.3 million.

IMI’s current ratio improved to 1.99:1 as of June 30, 2010, from 1.89:1 as of Dec. 31, 2009. Its gross debt-to-equity ratio likewise strengthened to 0.26:1 from 0.29:1.

The company’s operations in China and Singapore regstered $116.3 million in revenues, accounting for 62 percent of IMI’s total revenues. The figure was up 19 percent from the year earlier level.

It’s Philippine operations, on the other hand, recorded flat growth, with $72.4 million in revenues,

IMI is a vertically integrated electronics manufacturing services ( EMS ) provider to leading global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in diversified markets that include those in the automotive, industrial, medical, solar energy, telecommunications infrastructure, storage device and consumer electronics industries.   

IMI opened its sixth facility in Chengdu, Sichuan province in southwestern China. It is consistently ranked among the top 30 EMS providers in the world.

Last year, IMI swung to profitability with net earnings of $10 million as against a $17 million net loss in 2008.