HPH Trust expects its long-term port throughput growth to be 3-5%

SINGAPORE - The managers of Singapore- listed Hutchison Port Holdings Trust (HPH Trust) expected the throughput at their terminals in the southern Chinese ports of Hong Kong and Shenzhen to grow by 3-5 percent over the long term, they said on Monday.

This is in comparison to the growth of around 10 percent witnessed in the 1990s and the early part of the 2000s.

However, the managers still have confidence in the competitiveness of south China as an export manufacturing base, Ivor Chow, chief financial officer of Hutchison Port Holdings Management Pte. Limited, told a press briefing in Singapore.

"The confidence comes from the fact we still believe, even with wages and salaries on the rise, south China remains very competitive, from a skills set of point, from efficiency and customs point," he said.

The skills and efficiency in terms of the supply chain and logistics offset some of the rise in labor cost.

The assets within the HPH Trust mainly include deep water port operations in Hong Kong and neighboring Shenzhen, which are closely related to the demand for exports from China in the United States and Europe.

Chow said he expected the throughput at the company's ports to be "incrementally better" in 2014.

However, there is not likely to be a huge jump in profit, said Gerry Yim, chief executive officer of the company.

The revenue of HPH Trust was affected by the industrial actions by port workers in Hong Kong last year, in addition to the sluggish demand from the United States and Europe.

Chow said the managers are aiming to distribute "not less than what we distributed last year" in 2014.

HPH Trust's full-year dividend distribution was HK$0.41, which represents a dividend yield of 7.8 percent.

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