The net operating loss for the six months ended December 31 was $8.9 million, the same as for the corresponding period a year earlier.
The State-owned farmer now expected an operating profit of between $2m and $7m for the full June 30 year, it said in a brief statement presented to Parliament. Previously it had expected a loss of $13.1m.
An upward revision of Fonterra’s milk payout forecast was the reason for the expected improvement, the directors said.
Operating earnings were the most accurate measure of Landcorp’s trading.
It also reported a net profit after tax which, under accounting rules, includes revaluations of assets. Valuation gains for the half-year took the reported figure to a $37.9m profit.
Directors said the gains were on livestock held for breeding and or production, rather than sale, and did not represent operating cashflows.
Dividend payments were based on net operating earnings and the loss meant no interim dividend was declared, as was also the case last year.
During the six months to December 31 a 30% increase in the milk price was offset by a 21% drop in livestock revenues. There had been fewer animals sold and the costs of buying livestock were higher, directors said.
