Nestle Malaysia profit nudges up 2% for ‘challenging’ 2019

Nestle Malaysia posted a profit of 672.91 million ringgit ($159 million) for the full-year 2019 compared to 658.88 million ringgit in 2018, a rise of 2.13%.

The company’s revenue was almost flat, reaching 5.518 billion ringgit ($1.3 billion) in 2019 from 5.519 billion ringgit in 2018, the company reported in a bourse filing on Tuesday (Feb 25).

Its food and beverages segment earned a revenue of 4.68 billion ringgit ($1.1 billion), up from 4.43 billion ringgit in 2018.

Its other business line, which includes nutrition, Nestle Professional, Nestle Health Science and Nespresso, brought in 836.08 million ringgit in 2019, a drop of 23.26%.

Nestle Malaysia said consumer demand for 2019 versus 2018 was “challenging”.

“The good performance in 2019 was supported by strong operational sales execution, anticipation of market trends and a sustained stream of innovations throughout the year,” said the company.

In 2019 the company launched a string of products, including instant noodle MAGGI Pedas Giler range, new Ready-to-Drink variants including NESCAFÉ Tarik Kurang Manis and MILO Protein Up, and STARBUCKS AT HOME range.

Nestle Malaysia said it is “encouraged” by its 2019 performance, particularly in the context of the volatile trading environment, and that it remains optimistic for continued growth in 2020.

“We foresee the soft consumer demand will continue to prevail as well as pressure from external factors, including commodity prices or any of the several crisis that the world is confronting in this early part of the year.”

All products manufactured, imported and distributed by Nestle Malaysia are halal-certified by JAKIM and its recognised Islamic authorities, says the company.

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