Aramex posts 4% growth in revenue and profits

Dubai: Logistics firm Aramex booked Dh1.2 billion in revenues for the first quarter of 2019, a growth of 4 per cent compared to the same period in 2018.

The Dubai-based business also grew its net profit for the quarter by 4 per cent, reaching Dh108 million, compared to Dh103 million in the first quarter of 2018.

Currency fluctuations — mainly in the Libyan dinar, South African rand and Australian dollar — impacted revenues, the company said. Without such fluctuations, revenues would have grown by 8 per cent.

The company’s strategic restructuring of its domestic operations in India was also noted as an negative weight on Aramex’s revenues.

Net profit was negatively impacted by Dh10.6 million due to the implementation of IFRS16, a newly introduced accounting standard, and currency fluctuations.

However, Aramex’s strategic restructuring of operations in India delivered a positive contribution of Dh6.7 million to net income.

“We continue to benefit from the healthy growth in global e-commerce volumes,” said Bashar Obaid, CEO of Aramex.

“However,” he continued, “we have started witnessing pressure on International Express margins due to lower and more competitive pricing.”

Obaid added that Aramex’s key priorities for the year were to “continue to invest in upgrading our service level across all our core markets, while progressing aggressively in executing our digital transformation roadmap.”