Wisdom Marine Lines Co Ltd (慧洋海運), one of the nation’s major bulk shippers, yesterday said it has a long-term goal to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange to help fund its growing business as early as the end of this year, as the bulk shipping industry continues to show signs of imminent recovery.
Wisdom Marine last year issued US$99.31 million in convertible bonds and depositary receipts on the London Stock Exchange, making it the first company in the Greater China region to trade shares in London.
“We will not rule out the opportunity of listing shares in New York in the future,” Wisdom Marine chairman James Lan (藍俊昇) told reporters after the company’s annual shareholders’ meeting yesterday.
Wisdom Marine is scheduled to welcome another six new vessels by the end of this year, to raise the number of its fleet to 97, with the company already signing long-term contracts for all of the new ships.
Lan said the early signs for a recovery for the industry may emerge in the fourth quarter at the earliest.
Shareholders yesterday approved Wisdom Marine’s plan to distribute cash dividend of NT$2 per share and a stock dividend of NT$0.25 per share, based on its net profit of NT$1.44 billion (US$48.06 million), or NT$3.43 per share, recorded last year.
Pre-tax profit was NT$706.57 million last month, down 18.87 percent from a year earlier.
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