Helens warns of losses as PC Partner posts buoyant profit

Two Hong Kong-listed firms with secondary listings on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) have had contrasting fortunes in 2024, with one warning of losses for the year and the other reporting a 4.3-time surge in earnings over the same period.

- Kang Wan Chern

China bar operator Helens International Holdings on March 19 warned that it is expecting revenue to decline to between 730 million yuan (S$135 million) and 780 million yuan in 2024, down from 1.2 billion yuan in 2023. It cited weak consumer demand and the impact amid China's property downturn.

Helens International, which also operates three Helen's Bar outlets here in Orchard Central, Clarke Quay and Chijmes, added that it anticipates a net loss of 60 million yuan to 90 million yuan in 2024, compared with a net profit of 180.5 million yuan in 2023.

It attributed the losses to impairments as a result of a drop in the fair value of office properties amid China's property downturn, network optimisation costs under a new business strategy, and expenses related to its secondary listing on SGX in July 2024.