(Alliance News) - Coral Products PLC on Tuesday reported a return to profit in the first half of its financial year despite the ongoing impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In the six months ended October 31, the Merseyside-based plastics manufacturer and distributor's pretax profit widened to GBP541,000 from GBP25,000 year-on-year. Coral Products said that due to the addition of new Chinese suppliers for its Global One-Pak Ltd operation recently, profitability has returned.
Revenue in the period fell 12% to GBP10.6 million from GBP12.1 million in 2019. The company said it believes this was a result of a reduction in services provided by councils and authorities as the demand for recycling products reduced mainly due to the impact of Covid-19.
Shares in Coral Products were up 28% at 6.80 pence in London on Tuesday.
Coral Products also released its full year results after receiving an extension in October, as the Covid-19 outbreak caused a delay. The company reported a swing to a pretax loss of GBP821,000 from a GBP41,000 profit the year prior.
Revenue was GBP22.3 million, which was down 10% from GBP24.7 million year-on-year. The company said these decreases were "entirely" due to the impact of Covid-19 on operations.
The company said as a result of the impact, it would not be paying an annual dividend despite paying 0.25p in 2019.
Chair Joe Grimmond said: "Our group is facing a crisis that is unprecedented, but we believe that our balance sheet and margins mean that we can mitigate the effects. The crisis will pass at some point. At that time, it will be the work we do to move the business forward that will determine our future success. So, our priorities being clear: to do all we can to keep our workplaces as safe as possible for staff, secure the cash resources of the business and continue to develop our product ranges throughout the next financial period."
Looking ahead, Coral Products said as a result of experiencing a strong start to the new financial year, it looks forward to "satisfactory outturn for the year given the prevailing circumstances."
By Zoe Wickens; zoewickens@alliancenews.com
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Coral Products (CRU)