Adds details and background in paragraphs 6-10, share moves in paragraph 11
Oct 30 (Reuters) - Singapore-listed Wilmar International WLIL.SI posted a 71% increase in its third-quarter core net profit on Thursday, driven by stronger performance across its segments.
The company, one of the world's largest food producers, said core net profit rose to $357.2 million for the quarter ended September 30, from $208.1 million a year ago.
Higher sales in the tropical oils business lifted volumes in the feed and industrial products business by 3.2%, while steady palm oil prices bolstered the plantations segment.
Sales in the food products segment rose 6.5% year-on-year to 9.3 million tonnes.
"Improvement in food products segment results was largely aided by better performance in China’s oil, flour and rice businesses," Wilmar said in a statement.
However, outside its core operations, Wilmar recorded a net loss of $347.7 million for the quarter, hit by a 11.88 trillion rupiah ($716.96 million) penalty after Indonesia’s Supreme Court revoked the company’s acquittal in a case involving misconduct in obtaining palm oil export permits in 2022.
Five of Wilmar’s units faced misconduct allegations over actions taken during the 2021 cooking oil shortage in Indonesia.
A court panel initially ruled in the company’s favour in March, but the judgement was overturned after four judges were arrested for allegedly accepting bribes.
Acknowledging the ruling, Wilmar projected a third-quarter net loss on September 26, while still expecting profitability for the full year ending December 31.
Wilmar did not issue a formal forecast for the remainder of the year but said it expects its business to remain resilient, barring any major geopolitical disruptions.
Shares of the company ended 0.6% lower.
($1 = 16,570.0000 rupiah)
(Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee and Shruti Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Mrigank Dhaniwala)
((Shruti.Agarwal@thomsonreuters.com))