Asian Terminals Inc. said over the weekend net income rose 19.1 precent in the first quarter from a year ago despite the global pandemic.
ATI reported a net profit of P562.9 million from January to March, up from P472.5 million in the same period last year.
The company attributed the higher income to the continued cost-savings initiatives started during the second quarter of 2020 and the implementation of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act law which reduced the income tax rate from 30 percent to 25 percent.
ATI ended the quarter with revenues amounting to P2.72 billion, or 5.5 percent higher than P2.58 billion last year, while operating against a challenging market backdrop due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Compared to first quarter last year, revenues from ATI’s international containerized cargo operations in Manila South Harbor and Batangas Container Terminal increased by 9 percent and 7.6 percent, respectively, on account of higher container volumes.
The company said that from January to March, international gateway ports in Manila and Batangas handled over 327,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units) in consolidated container volume, an increase of 5 percent from the same period last year.
It said to sustain its resilient port operations, it would allot around P6 billion in capital investment this year to bankroll port expansion and modernization projects in Manila and Batangas and explore growth opportunities.
This includes the upgrade of the Batangas Passenger Terminal and the yard expansion and extension of berth facilities in Pier 3 of Manila South Harbor. Early this year, ATI took delivery of five brand-new rubber-tired gantry cranes, effectively increasing Manila South Harbor’s fleet by 22 percent to 28 units.
ATI’s investment programs on vital port infrastructure are in line with its commitment with the Philippine Ports Authority and in support of the post-pandemic resurgence of the economy.