KUALA LUMPUR (May 30): MISC Bhd’s (KL:MISC) net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2024 (1QFY2024) rose 24% to RM759.90 million, from RM612.90 million a year earlier, on the back of higher earnings from most of its divisions.

In a bourse filing on Thursday, the shipping group said revenue for the quarter rose to RM3.64 billion, from RM3.08 billion a year ago, mainly due to a weaker ringgit against the US dollar.

Earnings per share rose to 17 sen, from 13.70 sen previously.

MISC declared a dividend of eight sen per share, totalling RM357.1 million, to be paid on June 27.

On its outlook, MISC said that for the current year, prospects for the liquefied natural gas shipping market remain positive, as spot rates are anticipated to gradually improve in line with seasonal demand.

It said operating income for the gas assets and solutions segment is anticipated to remain stable, supported by its portfolio of long-term charters.

As for the petroleum shipping segment, MISC said market rates remained firm amid an increase in tonne-mile demand driven by growing long-haul Atlantic exports, notably from the US, Brazil and Guyana.

It said the current-year outlook remains positive, with favourable tanker supply-demand fundamentals.

The group said the petroleum and product shipping segment will continue to identify opportunities, particularly in dual-fuel assets, and focus on building long-term secured income to generate business growth.

“Global upstream capital expenditure spending remained resilient during the first quarter of 2024, amid high oil prices.

“Demand for floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) units is anticipated to remain robust throughout the year, primarily driven by an increase in global oil demand, and a healthy number of planned projects, mainly from Brazil, Africa and Asia-Pacific,” it said.

At the midday break on Thursday, MISC traded unchanged at RM8.30, with 398,900 shares done. Its market value stood at RM37.05 billion.