Carlota Posts P9.3 M Income

June 28, 1999 PSE CIRCULAR FOR BROKERS NO. 1527-99 Carlota Posts P9 . 3 M Income Publicly listed sugar manufacturer Central Azucarera de La Carlota reports an unaudited income of P9.3 million for crop year 1998-1999, a strong reversal from last crop years' P118.0 million loss. Total revenues improved 12.5% to P665.6 million from P591.4 from production of 97,573 metric tons of raw sugar. "The positive results achieved despite the adverse effects of the weather disturbances and economic situation reflect that Carlota is back on, its feet," said newly appointed Carlota President, Miguel Gaspar. LibLex The company incurred substantial losses in the preceding crop year due to the financial turmoil arising from the extended Asian economic crisis when its earnings were eroded by high debt service costs and foreign exchange losses. Gaspar noted that Carlota's operating fundamentals were sound as a result of sustained investments to improve productivity and efficiency, such as the state-of-the-art John Thompson boiler put on line in 1997. "We benefited from the first full-year operation of our upgraded production facility," he explained.