Shipping Corp plans to buy four ships

Bangladesh Shipping Corporation (BSC) secured a massive jump in profits in fiscal year 2021-22, following which it now plans to buy four ships for the smooth sailing of the business momentum into the future.

The state-owned autonomous corporation owns eight ships and oil tankers and charters sea-going vessels to carry exports, such as garments, and imports, such as grain and crude oil. It also offers ship repair services.

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The profit of Tk 225.75 crore was a year-on-year increase of 213 per cent.

It reported earnings per share (EPS) of Tk 14.80 for 2021-22 whereas it was Tk 4.72 a year earlier.

The company did not disclose how much it would invest to buy the ships. However, it did say that two would be tankers and two multipurpose bulk carriers.

Of the previous eight, two were brought in 1987 and the rest after 2018, according to its annual report of 2020-21.

The company did not specify the reason behind the jump in profit.

Instead, it said to have "achieved commercial and technological excellence by properly following the complex international regulations related to shipping, determining and properly managing various risks and taking timely actions".

So, income rose while costs were controlled, it said in a statement on the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) website.

"As a result, the BSC has been able to earn more profits than before," it said.

Muhammad Ashraf Hossain, company secretary, did not receive phone calls and reply to The Daily Star's SMS.

The net asset value per share rose to Tk 72.52 from Tk 60.28 while the net operating cash flow per share climbed to Tk 23.87 from Tk 12.78.

The company's board of directors recommended a 20 per cent cash dividend for 2021-2022.

The company's paid-up capital was Tk 152 crore. It has a reserve and surplus of Tk 302 crore, according to the DSE data.

Though its profits soared last year, it dropped in the first quarter of the current financial year of 2022-23.

The BSC reported a profit of Tk 60.71 crore for the July-September period of 2022, which was Tk 66.20 crore during the same quarter a year earlier, according to the unaudited financial statements.

Shares of the corporation were down 0.52 per cent on the DSE yesterday.