MANILA, Philippines — Food to infrastructure conglomerate San Miguel Corp. posted a net profit of P21.9 billion in 2020, down by 55 percent from P48.6 billion in 2019.
Net sales for the full year were also down by 29 percent to P725.8 million.
SMC’s performance in the second half of 2020, however, showed a substantial improvement, recording a net profit of P25.9 billion, a reversal of the P3.9 billion net loss in the first half of last year.
SMC president and chief operating officer Ramon Ang said while 2020 was a good year for all businesses and the economy overall, the conglomerate managed to sustain recoveries in the second half.
“There are still so many challenges ahead – and a lot of uncertainty. But we believe our economic recovery is underway as the vaccine rollout gathers pace,” Ang said.
By business segment, San Miguel Food and Beverage Inc. (SMFB) registered consolidated revenues of P279.3 billion for the whole of 2020, down 10 percent but narrowing its 19 percent decline in the first half.
This was driven by volume improvements in the second half of 2020 from its beer business.
SMFB’s consolidated operating income and net income ended at P33.4 billion and P22.4 billion, lower by 30 percent and 31 percent, respectively.
For the power business, SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. posted a net income of P18.9 billion last year, up 31 percent from P14.3 billion in 2019.
Full-year off-take volumes reached 26,116 Gwh, translating to P115.0 billion in consolidated revenues, 15 percent lower than 2019.
Petron Corp., the country’s biggest oil refiner, incurred a net loss of P4.6 billion in 2020 as net sales dropped by 44 percent to P286 billion last year from P514.3 billion in 2019.
Petron, however, achieved a turnaround in the last two quarters of 2020, with a net profit of P2.8 billion in the second half of last year. This was a reversal of the P14 billion net loss in the first half due to stabilizing world crude prices, and subsequent inventory gains realized as prices began to rally toward year-end.
For the infrastructure business, SMC Infrastructure’s revenues for the year ended at P14.6 billion, down 38 percent from 2019, brought about by the decline in traffic volumes at all operating toll roads due to travel and quarantine restrictions.
However, volume improvements continued throughout the second half, with combined average daily vehicle traffic in the fourth quarter reaching 80 percent of 2019 levels, with notable recoveries seen at SLEX and Star Tollway. Operating income amounted to P2.6 billion.