Stock News: BH Global Marine optimistic on FY earnings!

BH Global Marine Ltd, a Singapore-based provider of marine electrical products, said it expects stronger earnings growth this year on the back of booming demand in the oil and gas industry. "Definitely we will be getting better results," BH Global director of strategic business planning Laurance Bong told XFN-Asia in an interview. Besides growing its revenues, the company is looking at cutting costs amid rising prices of raw materials, particularly copper. The effect of higher raw material costs was evident in BH Global's results last year when its net profit eased 1.0 pct to 6.83 mln sgd although its revenue rose 23.4 pct to 30.29 mln sgd. "We want to cut down costs through various constraints," Bong said. Bong said the company is not looking at potential mergers or acquisitions at the moment, rejecting recent market speculation that it may merge with Aqua-Terra, a marine hardware supplier. "We have not spoken to them," Bong said, adding though that the firm was "open to looking for strategic partners" Going forward, Bong said BH Global will continue to enjoy strong orders from key shipyard clients such as Keppel Corp and SembCorp Marine. At the same time, the company is looking to expand its presence in the Middle East and China, and venture into new markets such as India.