Dalhoff sales lower

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33934, 29 August 1975, Page 13

Dalhoff sales lower

GVew Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON. There is no doubt devaluation would have a dampening effect on sales of imported capital equipment because of the resulting increase in prices, the chairman of Dalhoff and King Holdings, Ltd (Mr A. G. Robb) told the second annual meeting of the company.

“This will be most noticeable in equipment involving payment in United States and Canadian dollars,” he said.

“Although the deterrent effect has not yet appeared, we believe the new prices will make many customers reconsider the justification for purchasing new capital equipment while economic; conditions remain uncer-! tain.

“However, if they decide ! to extract a longer’ working [ life from existing equipment, this would lead to a corresponding increase in demand for spare parts which have always been a major contributor to the company’s sales and profit,” he said.

It was too soon to make a realistic assessment of the over-all effect of devaluation on the company’s sales, and the situation would not be clear at the end of the half--year, September 30.

Shareholders were told that the company’s losses on' exchange transactions, arising from the August deva-1 luation, would be “quite; minimal.”

Sales for the first four months of the current year! fell 16.5 per cent to $3.2m. compared with $3.9m for the same period last year.

Sehel dividend Sebel, Ltd, Sydney town house and furniture group, has resumed the payment of| a dividend after a profit of; sAusts2,ooo in the six months to June 30 which con-; trasts with a loss of $86,000 i in the previous correspond-1 ing half-year. The directors' say that this year’s result [ was arrived at without providing for building depreciation. Had the same pro-; cedure been adopted last year, Sebel would have lost! $66,000.