Berjaya Group swings to net loss in Q2

BERJAYA Group Bhd, a diversified group, swung to a second-quarter net loss after it stopped accounting for income from the 7-Eleven convenience store business and due to lower progress billings by its property development arm.

The performance was also attributed to the the loss of sales by Roadhouse Grill Inc, which operates restaurants mainly in Florida, the US.

The restaurant operator was badly affected by Hurricane Katrina in August.

Berjaya Group announced a net loss of RM17.8 million for the second quarter ended October 31 2005, a hefty dip from a net profit of RM56.8 million registered in the previous corresponding quarter.

Revenue was down by a tenth to RM708.06 million compared with RM791.53 million recorded in the second quarter of the previous year.

For the full six-month performance, the group's net loss was RM58.72 million compared with a profit of RM29.31 million registered in the first half of the last financial year.

Revenue, too, fell to RM1.37 billion for the first half ended October 31 2005, as against RM1.63 billion in the same period before.