According to the Zhitong Finance App, Science and Technology (00746) announced its 2023 results. Revenue fell 31.0% to HK$4.51 billion. Profit during the year was HK$401 million, a sharp contraction of 65.3% year-on-year; basic profit per share was HK48.6 cents, and the proposed final dividend was HK14 cents per share.

In terms of chemical business, the overall atmosphere in the domestic manufacturing industry is still weak, and prices of industrial materials such as bulk chemical products remain low. The large fluctuation in the prices of various raw materials for lithium batteries has also led downstream companies to actively adjust production plans to deal with it. As a result, the sales price achieved by lithium battery additives this year has also dropped significantly compared to the same period last year. As stocks of raw materials purchased earlier have been digested one after another, and the Group actively strengthened cost control measures during the year, gross profit has improved since the first half of the year. In terms of property business, the group sold 47 more “Xinyuexi” residential units during the year, leaving only 28 units for sale. The commercial floor occupancy rate was over 80%, mainly driven by the “Xinyuexi Shangjia Apartment” talent apartment, which generated approximately HK$70 million in revenue from the property business during the period.

During the year under review, gross profit was approximately HK$1,062 million, a decrease of HK$1,062 million compared with last year. The decrease in gross profit was mainly due to the decline in product prices in the chemical business during the review year and the combined impact of taking time to absorb stocks of raw materials purchased earlier.