The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) reported a 9 percent hike in profits for the first half of the year as it continues to recover from the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
PPA presented a net income in January to June 2022 reached P5.02 billion from P4.6 billion in the same period last year. The first half profit was 24 percent higher than PPA’s target of P4.06 billion net income for the period.
The agency said its net income is now only 13 percent down compared to the pre-pandemic figure. PPA’s net income declined by as much as 50 percent during the onslaught of the coronavirus in 2020.
Gross revenues grew 14.3 percent to P9.44 billion for the period versus the P8.26 billion recorded in 2021, PPA said. Its expenses rose 14 percent to P4.4 billion from P3.6 billion in 2021.
PPA said almost all of its revenue streams posted a positive deviation for the January to June period in which the highest revenue increase came from concession fees and other income, up 552 percent, followed by storage fees that grew 55 percent and domestic dockage, 28 percent.
PPA said it is averaging a 9 percent increase in revenues in the last 18 months which is a steady pace moving toward pre-pandemic levels.
PPA added it is bent on further improving its operations based on the earlier pronouncements made by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Transport Secretary Jaime Bautista. Initially, it is targeting those low-hanging fruits and slowly expand from there.
Earlier, PPA reported a 1.5 percentdecline in total cargo throughput to 125.5 million metric tons (MMT) from 127.3 MMT in the same period last year,as export volume posted the most significant decrease of 14 percent dragging the total foreign cargo volume by 5.5 percent.
In terms of containerized cargo traffic, a 2.66 percent hike was recorded to reach 3.7 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), anchored on the 6.2 percent increase posted by imported boxed cargoes. Domestic box volume, meanwhile, declined by 1.8 percent to 1.41 million TEU.
Passenger volume posted a 144 percent increase with the resumption of domestic tourism, trade and regular travel activities earlier this year.
PPA is expected to complete seven seaport projects in the first 100 days of the new administration, according to the Department of Transportation.
With additional reports: Malaya Business Insight, Myla Iglesias
