LBC back to profit on cost cutting

MANILA, Philippines —  Logistics courier LBC Express Holdings Inc. booked a profit of nearly P200 million in 2023, as it slashed business costs to offset the decrease in revenue.

According to its annual report, LBC Express turned in a net income of P176.29 million last year, a reversal from its net loss of P541.97 million in 2022.

Although LBC Express suffered a revenue decline of four percent to P14.51 billion, the company cut its costs by seven percent to P11.47 billion to nurse its finances back to the pink of health.

On one hand, LBC Express grew its revenue from money transfer services to P687.49 million in 2023 from P626.86 million in 2022.

On the other hand, the courier endured a five percent drop in earnings from logistics to P13.83 billion, from P14.56 billion.

LBC Express embarked on a series of cost-cutting measures to reduce its operational expenses. It shut a number of outlets that were performing below standard and some warehouses as well as part of consolidation.

“Utilities and depreciation also went down mainly due to closure of unproductive branches and the continued consolidation of warehouses,” LBC Express said.

For this year, LBC Express will bank on the recovering demand for logistics services to maintain its profitability, as economies make their return to pre-pandemic levels of trade.

In 2023 the company traced the bulk of its revenue at 95 percent to the logistics business, while it attributed the remainder to money transfer.

The company offers a number of courier services catering to both retail and corporate demands. Primarily, LBC Express provides individual customers with air cargo forwarding and balikbayan box deliveries, taking pride in its capability to ship within 24 hours.

For enterprises, LBC Express extends sea freight forwarding for both full container load and less than a container load kind of cargo. The courier has widened its reach on this segment and views it with much potential for expansion.

Likewise, it remits cash from one border to another through its money transfer, and it also processes payments for bills through its branches nationwide.

LBC Express has 1,525 branches in the Philippines and 76 outlets, including 556 partners, in 29 other countries globally.