Ghabbour Auto (GB Auto) has announced its segmental and consolidated results for the period ending 31 December 2020, highlighting its resilient revenue performance.
Revenues increased by 16.2% quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) and by 1.5% year-on-year (y-o-y) in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2020 to EGP 7.2bn, on the back of recovering market conditions. Net profits recorded an exceptional near seven-fold increase y-o-y to EGP 287.8m in Q4 of 2020.
In full-year terms, revenues declined by 8.2% to EGP 23.31bn in FY 2019/20, due to the impact of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic during the first half (H1) of the year. However, company-wide operational improvements drove a significant increase in net income to EGP 917m in FY 2019/20, successfully delivering GB Auto’s best bottom-line performance to date.
“The past year has truly tested the resilience of our business model and the strength of our market position,” said GB Auto CEO Raouf Ghabbour, “During the onset of the pandemic in the H1 of the year, our local markets witnessed a nationwide lockdown and restrictions on tourism that saw reduced demand for our products across our lines of business.”
He added that the company accordingly began monitoring inventory levels and prudently managing its working capital, to ensure business continuity and mitigate material impacts on operations.
As consumers normalised to the COVID-19 situation and restrictions eased across the nation, GB Auto saw increased demand for its product offering as a result of a strong recovery in Egypt. In the passenger car segment, the company outperformed its 2019 results, while at its two and three-wheeler LoB, it managed to deliver an improved performance despite the impact that COVID-19 during H1 of 2020.
Overall, GB Auto was able to reap the rewards of its swift and early response measures across its operations, as well as the improved market conditions over the last six months. This allowed it to close out an unprecedented year on a positive note, Ghabbour noted.
