Singapore-listed Olam Group logs nearly sixfold jump in first-half profit to $1.91 billion

Singapore's Olam Group announced a substantial surge in first-half profit, reporting a nearly sixfold increase to $1.91 billion on August 14. The significant boost was attributed to gains from asset sales and a revaluation tied to the company's ongoing restructuring program. Olam sold a 44.58% stake in its Olam Agri subsidiary and liquidated its technology services business, Mindsprint, yielding a one-off gain of $1.75 billion.

This resulted in a profit attributable to the group of $1.91 billion for the six months ending June 30, a sharp contrast to the $323.8 million profit a year earlier. Despite the impressive overall profit, Olam's operational profit from continuing operations declined by more than half, settling at S$64.4 million. The company declared a total dividend of seven cents per share, an increase from two cents previously paid.

Out of this, one cent was paid as an interim dividend and six cents constituted the special dividend. Olam's flagship food ingredients unit, ofi, anticipates market volatility persisting due to geopolitical shifts, evolving trade policies, and weather-related supply risks. The unit aims for low- to mid-single-digit volume growth and high-single-digit adjusted earnings growth over the medium term.