On Mar 27, Far East Group : 5TJ 0% non-executive chairman Loh Pui Lai acquired 220,000 shares at an average price of S$0.102 per share. This increased her total interest in the company from 5.65 per cent to 5.85 per cent.

 

The principal activities of Far East Group consist of manufacturing and trading of refrigeration parts, servicing of cold rooms, construction and installation of commercial and industrial cold rooms and all other incidental business of refrigeration.

 

On Feb 28, Far East Group reported that its profit before tax improved by S$1.3 million, from S$1.0 million in FY21 to S$2.3 million in FY22 (ended Dec 31).

 

This was mainly due to an increase in revenue in FY22. The group&rsquo s business in the various segments of wholesale and distribution, engineering solutions and manufacturing have started to recover on the back of increased economic activities with the global easing of travel restrictions.

 

This saw its revenue increase by S$21.1 million or 25.4 per cent, from S$83.1 million in FY21 to S$104.2 million in FY22.

 

On May 30, Far East Group : 5TJ 0% executive director and CEO Steven Loh Mun Yew acquired 619,000 shares of the company at 11.5 cents per share.

 

With a consideration of S$71,185, this increased his total interest in the company from 60.59 per cent to 61.15 per cent.

 

Loh was appointed to the board of Far East Group in 1990 and has more than 30 years of experience in the heating, ventilation, air-conditioning and refrigeration (HVAC& R) industry.

 

He is responsible for the formulation and execution of the group&rsquo s business strategies, strategic directions and expansion plans, as well as managing its overall business development and financial performance.

 

In 2021, Far East Group&rsquo s revenue improved by S$28.5 million or 52.3 per cent to S$83.1 million, from S$54.6 million in 2020, due to the recovery of all business segments.

 

This saw the group report an attributable net loss of S$32,000 in 2021, compared to a loss of S$7.2 million in 2020.

 

Loh noted in March that the commercial and light industrial (refrigeration) segment remained the group&rsquo s largest revenue contributor, accounting for 64.7 per cent of its 2021 top line.

 

He added that the residential and commercial (air-conditioning) segment accounted for 34.0 per cent of total revenue.

 

The oil, marine and gas (refrigeration and air-conditioning) segment accounted for the remaining 1.3 per cent.

CATALIST-LISTED Far East Group said on Friday that it intends to diversify and expand its core business to include farming, storage and distribution of fresh produce.

 

In an exchange filing, the company also announced that it has entered into a subscription and shareholders agreement with fresh-produce firm Comfresh Group Holdings. It will take a 20 per cent stake in the Australia-based company.

 

The subscription price to be paid is A$7.3 million (S$7.32 million), which it said will be funded through internal resources and satisfied in cash. Upon completion, Comfresh will be an associated company of Far East Group.

 

The group said it has considered opportunities in the storage and distribution of fresh produce, including farming of vegetables and salad greens, to diversify its business and broaden its stream of income and revenue.

 

It intends to diversify its core business of being a provider of refrigeration and airconditioning systems and products to include the business of distribution and farming of fresh produce.

 

The company said: " There exists a beneficial collaboration among the group' s existing refrigeration and air-conditioning business and the proposed fresh-produce business as the group' s expertise in solutions in cooling and refrigeration have natural synergy with the technological expertise necessary in the storage and processing of the fresh produce to ensure proper air circulation and humidity controls."

 

It added that the proposed subscription will also " provide additional, recurrent and sustainable revenue streams and may reduce the group' s reliance on its core business" .

 

Far East Group plans to carry out the fresh produce business through Comfresh, and it intends to convene an extraordinary general meeting to seek its shareholders' approval for the proposed subscription and diversification.

 

In recent months, other SGX-listed companies, such as KTL Global and Mercurius Capital Investment have also announced plans to diversify their business into the fresh produce or grocery segments.