Nampak revenue jumped 11% as trading profit from the rest of Africa surpassed turnover from the group’s South African home market for the first time yet in the year to September 30. But the packaging company saw a R681m foreign exchange loss from its Angolan and Nigerian businesses, with Nigeria contributing the bulk. This pushed headline earnings per share down 48%. Group operating profit of R2.2bn, which was up 29%, benefited from a R1.3bn capital injection from a recent property sale and leaseback transaction. "It’s a disappointing result as expected, due mainly to forex losses, and future losses cannot be ruled out," Mark Hodgson, an analyst at Avior Capital Markets, said on Monday. A lack of a final dividend in line with Nampak’s cash conservation strategy would see dividend cover revised down over the liquidity problems in Nigeria and Angola. These came amid foreign exchange shortages and large currency devaluations in the two markets. But Nampak CEO Andre de Ruyter said "all ...
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