Cape fishing giant Oceana Group hauled a much bigger profit from its inshore fishing business to post an interim performance so powerful that a fairly hefty competition commission fine hardly provided any drag on bottom line.
In fact, had Oceana not been lumbered with the R35 million fine for transgressions in the ‘small pelagic’ sector, the group would have reported operating profits of almost R335 million — more than 50 percent higher than last year. The official operating profit of R265 million was a more than respectable 25 percent ahead of the last half year number – not exactly a shabby performance.
What stole the show in the interim period was the performance of Oceana’s inshore division, which – considering the prevailing brittle economic conditions, was nothing short of astounding. Despite an 11 percent hike in revenue to R1.3 billion in the six months to end March, the inshore division managed to more than double its profits to R109 million.
