Shares of Citic Pacific surged in Hong Kong after its full-year earnings surprised the market on the upside.
As of 2:15pm HK time, the stock was up 10.3 per cent to HK$12.22 after ending the morning session at HK$11.62. The company said during the midday break that annual earnings fell 25 per cent in the year to December.
The fall was not quite as bad as some analysts had expected.
Bank of America Merill Lynch had forecast that the company’s 2012 net profit would be down by 26 per cent, and Morgan Stanley had predicted a profit drop of as much as 31 per cent.
Citic Pacific said in a statement that profit from continuing business operations was significantly lower in the year to December, mainly due to a sharp decline in the contribution from a speciality steel business in the second half.
It said its China property business generated less profit last year, compared to the previous corresponding period.
