Cirtek Holdings net profit up 25.5% in 9 mos

MANILA, Philippines - Bucking a weak global macroeconomic environment, Laguna-based semiconductor firm Cirtek Holdings Philippines Corp. reported a 25.5-percent surge in its nine-month profit to $2.85 million as it benefited from higher interest income.

In a financial report submitted to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Cirtek said net sales rose 8.9 percent to $29.84 million, largely due to the improved performance of its QFN, hermetics and new product divisions which grew 108 percent, 67 percent and 26 percent, respectively.

The IC division recorded a modest growth of two percent while the discrete and multichip divisions posted lower sales.

Gross profit grew 24.4 percent to $4.54 million while interest income more than doubled to $19.59 million from $7.42 million.

“The nine months of 2012 was difficult for the global semiconductor industry as weak economic conditions in major markets have reduced demand for electronic products using semiconductor device,” Cirtek said in a statement.

Cirtek, nevertheless, attributed the improvement in earnings to customer-and application-specific packages, which accounted for at least 65 percent of its output, as well as its diversified customers and product portfolio.

The company’s products are used in diverse end-user applications in different industries, allowing Cirtek to cope with upswings and downswings in demand.

The company said it remains confident it would achieve a nine to 12-percent growth in its bottom line this year.

For next year, however, Cirtek expressed cautious optimism as it sees demand for PC and peripherals softening.