Africa-Press – Eswatini. The Royal Eswatini Sugar Corporation has announced a forecasted profit of E381 million which will be pocketed by shareholders.
The profit which will be paid to shareholders was announced by the corporation yesterday. According to the notice issued, a final dividend (dividend 60) of 67.9 cents per share in the currency of Eswatini for the year to March 31, has been declared payable to shareholders registered in the books of the company at the close of business on May 6.
“The transfer books and register of members will be closed from May 7-13 both days inclusive, for the purposes of determining those shareholders to whom the dividends shall be paid. The payment of dividend is expected to be posted on or about June 17,” the notice reads.
The corporation stated that normal and withholding tax would be deducted from dividends paid to local shareholders and non-resident shareholders respectively where applicable.
Notice
According to the notice the final dividend will be paid out of current earnings. “The unaudited consolidated forecasted profit before taxation of the company and its subsidiaries for the year to March 31 is approximately E381 million,” reads the notice.
Worth noting is that the forecasted profit shows a decrease when compared to that of the year ending in March 2021.
In 2020, the corporation mentioned in a published statement that the unaudited consolidated forecasted profit before taxation of the company and its subsidiaries for the year ending March 31, 2021 was approximately E511m.
Just recently the Eswatini Sugar Association (ESA) announced that the country was currently experiencing low level of sugar stocks and the situation was expected to normalise next month. This according to the association, resulted from among other factors the unfavourable weather conditions, national unrest and riots, and labour disputes.
According to The Sugar Industry in Eswatini 2022 report Eswatini is Africa’s fourth largest sugar producer and the 25th largest producer worldwide. The report suggests that sugar is the country’s main export commodity and accounts for over half of the country’s agricultural output. “Sugarcane is grown under irrigation in the Lowveld of the country on 57 000 hectares of land.
The industry is highly regulated, and the Eswatini Sugar Association, an umbrella body of all growers and millers of sugarcane, markets and sells all sugar and molasses produced in the country,” the report reads.
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