Six companies with securities listed on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX) reported a recovery in business performance in the second quarter of this year over the early days of the health crisis, on the back of the rapid pace of the Covid-19 vaccination programme in the region and beyond.

In a filing to the CSX on August 19, corporate bond-listed Phnom Penh Commercial Bank Plc (PPCBank) reported total revenue of 77.264 billion riel ($19 million) in the second quarter, up 3.471 billion riel or 4.7 per cent year-on-year, and net profit of 15.129 billion riel, down 1.891 billion riel or 11.1 per cent year-on-year.

PPCBank chairman Yim Yong Taick said in the filing that the Cambodian government has taken the “right steps” to respond to the Covid-19 crisis.

He said the government has created the fiscal space to minimise the economic impact of the crisis, especially on the most vulnerable people.

“Despite this time of uncertainty, in [the April-June period], PPCBank got approval from authorities to perform the bank’s business activities and [launch] existing/new products and services,” he said, adding that as of June 30, the South Korean-owned bank’s outstanding loans, deposits and shareholders’ equity reached $727 million, $755 million and $163 million, respectively.

Another bond-listed microfinance institution, LOLC (Cambodia) Plc reported net profit of 50.524 billion riel in the April-June period, up 2.756 billion riel or 5.77 per cent year-on-year.

In the six-month period ended June 30, LOLC booked total interest income of 347.363 billion riel, up 41.406 billion riel or 13.533 per cent year-on-year, and net profit of 97.749 billion riel, up by 12.014 billion riel or 14.01 per cent year-on-year.

LOLC chairman Brindley de Zylva said his institution has adjusted itself promptly to business operations and financial activities during the pandemic, whilst fast forwarding the uptake of digital financial services.

“LOLC Cambodia has been upgrading its existing digital banking channels and partnering with third parties to integrate more distribution channels to provide superior customer experience,” he said.

And bond-listed automobile company RMA (Cambodia) Plc reported “revenue” of 315.0 billion riel in the second quarter of this year, up 42.0 per cent year-on-year, and “profit” of 27.6 billion riel, up 52.8 per cent year-on-year.

Meanwhile, publicly-listed Pestech (Cambodia) Plc (PEPC) logged “revenue” of 110.668 billion riel in the fourth quarter of 2021 of its non-calendar quarterly reporting system – corresponding to the April-June period – up 65.24 per cent year-on-year from 66.974 billion riel.

In the 12-month period ended June 30, PEPC recorded “revenue” of 273.628 billion riel, up 70.614 billion riel or 34.78 per cent year-on-year from 203.014 billion riel.

The operator of the Kingdom’s largest special economic zone (SEZ), Phnom Penh SEZ Plc (PPSP), reported “profitable” business operations in the second quarter, and land revenue and rental income of 1,859,976,000 riel, compared to 17,844,664,000 riel in the same period last year.

PPSP director Hiroshi Uematsu said that as of June 30 the SEZ accommodated 92 investors from 14 countries and territories – mainly from Japan, Malaysia, Taiwan, China, the US and South Korea – that span a wide range of industries such as automobile parts, garments, food and beverage, plastics, electronics and jewellery.

But in stark contrast, the publicly-listed garment manufacturer Grand Twins International (Cambodia) Plc (GTI) booked a sharp 27.94 per cent year-on-year decrease in “revenue” in the second quarter, while net and operating losses surged by 647.97 per cent and 386.07 per cent, respectively.

GTI said the decrease in “revenue” was “due to suspension of the company’s production in April and in June, which has [led to a decrease] in products to be exported”, and the rising net and operating losses were “due to decreasing in the company’s revenue and increase of 50 per cent of salary to be paid to employees during the company’s suspension of production”.