Tasco ... July10

Tasco Bhd, 51.25%-owned subsidiary of Japan-based shipping group Nippon Yusen
Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), expects to grow in 2010 and despite the need to finance growth requirements, will likely continue to pay dividends.

The logistics-based company, listed in December 2007, is paying its first round of dividends for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2009 (FY09) totalling seven sen per share consisting of four sen interim dividend and three sen final dividend.

It has yet to commit to a dividend policy.

Asmat holds a 13.72% stake in Tasco.

It may need to buy its properties, expand its infrastructure to take advantage (of growing demand). Tasco aimed to ramp up its staff size on the back of growing demand and to expand its “consolidation cargo” service for small businesses.

Tasco currently provided consolidation cargo services to destinations that include Kobe, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Jakarta and also to the Philippines, but aimed to increase the frequency as well as the number of destinations mainly in the region for 2010.

The company, which currently has a strong presence in logistics for electrical and electronic products and automobile and autoparts, aims to expand into the chemical and fast-moving-consumer-goods segments in 2010.

In FY09, the company saw a 30% decline in operating profit to RM13.3 million on the back of a 23% drop in revenue to RM280.6 million. Its fortunes have sharply reversed after posting a 942% year-on-year increase in pre-tax profit to RM4.2 million for the first quarter ended March 31, 2010 on a revenue growth of 71% to RM90.7 million.