Author: The Fifth Person

Every year, Warren Buffett writes an annual letter to the shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway. His annual letters are one of the most widely read documents in the business world as investors clue in on Buffett’s outlook for the market and economy as well as Berkshire’s performance the past year: To the Shareholders of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.: Berkshire’s gain in net worth during 2015 was $15.4 billion, which increased the per-share book value of both our Class A and Class B stock by 6.4%. Over the last 51 years (that is, since present management took over), per-share book value has grown from $19...

Nestle (M) Bhd’s fourth quarter net profit rose 2% to RM99.79 million from RM98.3 million a year earlier. The food and beverage manufacturer said profit rise came on revenue growth during the fourth quarter ended Dec 31, 2015 (4QFY15). In a statement to Bursa Malaysia today, Nestle said revenue was higher at RM1.2 billion versus RMI. 11 billion on domestic and export sales. “From profit perspective, gross profit increased from RM377 million to RM460 million, a growth of 21.9% vs the corresponding period last year. Main drivers for this good profit development were the turnover increase, favourable trends in most of the raw materials, as well as diligent cost management throughout the...

Keppel Corporation (SGX: BN4) is one of the largest conglomerates in Singapore and one of the world’s largest builders of offshore oil rigs. In normal times, the latter point would be a cause for admiration, but with oil prices plunging over 70% from its 2014 peak, companies in the oil & gas industry are facing challenging times – and Keppel is no different. Chart: Financial Times Keppel’s share price has fallen from a high of $11 in July 2014 to $5.30 (as at 22 Feb 2016) – a 52% drop. When share prices fall so drastically, it’s easy to...

Wilmar International reported an 8.7% decline in earnings to U SSI .1 billion ($1.55 billion) for FY2015. Core net earnings, which exclude non-operating items, fell 4.4% to Sl.2 billion for the financial year to December, primarily due to foreign exchange losses. Group revenue declined 10% to $38.8 billion, due to lower commodity prices. However, this was offset by the strong growth in sales volume and higher margins. The tropical oils segment recorded a 4% decrease in sales volumes to 23.5 million MT, which resulted from lower crude palm oil prices, weak demand and lower margins, despite the 4% improvement in production yield to 21.4MT per hectare....

StarHub posted earnings of $372.3 million for FY201S, a marginal increase from the $370.5 million reported in FY2014. Revenue rose 2.4% to $2.4 billion, with the 34.5% increase in equipment sales to $228.3 million, despite the 0.1% dip in service revenue to $2.2 billion. Mobile revenue decreased 0.6% to $1.2 billion for the full year to December, on the back of lower prepaid and roaming revenue, and broadband revenue was 0.8% lower at $200.3 million. Pay TV service revenue grew 0.3% to $391 million, and fixed network service revenue was $6.6 million higher, arising from its data & internet services. For the full year, revenue from equipment...

Most Chinese food lovers in Singapore would probably know of Soup Restaurant — a Chinese restaurant that sells a popular dish called Samsui Ginger Chicken. In the 1920s-40s, Samsui women referred to a group of Chinese immigrants who came to Singapore in search of construction and industrial jobs. Due to poverty, they consumed a traditional dish, ginger chicken, only during Chinese new year. Today however, with our increased standard of living, it’s common to consume this dish any day. Photo: Soup Restaurant And so it was that I had my first taste of Samsui ginger chicken at Soup Restaurant...