Profits tabled in Parliament

Press, 9 December 1988, Page 6

Profits tabled in Parliament

All but on of 10 Stateowned enterprises which tabled financial statements in Parliament yesterday made a profit in the six months to September 30, 1988. New Zealand Railways Corporation reported a loss after extraordinary items of $166.4 million. In summary, the results were for the half year, compared with the same period last year as follows:

• New Zealand Railways Corporation — $166.4 million loss after redundancy, new debt servicing, and asset write-off costs. An operating loss of $55 million, compared with an operating loss of $36.5 million last year. • Telecom Corporation — $123.8 million profit (no directly comparable result last year), on turnover of $l.l billion.

• Forestry Corporation — $36.1 million profit ($24.4 million last year). • Postbank — $38.8 million profit for the half

year, compared with $32.8 million profit for the full 12 months to March 31, 1988. The bank warned it could not continue its inherited investment policy in a falling interest rate environment, had stalled investment plans due to impending privatisation, and had made a larger provision for bad and doubtful debts of $27.9 million.

0 Coal Corporation — $3.2 million profit (no comparison given). A highlight was a contract to supply New Zealand Steel, Ltd, with coal, but the corporation still had “no commercially sensible understanding” for supplying the Electricity Corporation. • N.Z. Post — $22.9 million profit ($23.2 million last year), helped by a large tax reduction this year. • Works Corporation — cash balance of $60.5 million (no comparison), but no proper accounts as the corporation has yet to

fix a valuation of its assets with the Government.

© Airways Corporation — $4.6 million profit ($2.3 million last year).

• Government Property Services, Ltd — $5.7 million profit ($12,458 million last year), the downturn reflecting the fact that the corporation began paying interest on its debt to the Crown in this financial year.

© Government Computing Service, Ltd — $7.2 million profit (no comparison).

The Opposition spokesman on Post Office corporations, Mr Maxwell, said the Postßank and Telecom profits were an indictment of Government policy, and were based on a reduction of services.

Recently announced higher telephone rentals were not justified in the light of Telecom’s profit, he said.