Dubai-based courier Aramex said on Monday it was cautious in its outlook due to global economic uncertainties after reporting a 129 percent jump in fourth-quarter net profit. The company's net profit rose to 131.8 million dirhams ($35.88 million) in the three months to December 31, from 57.6 million dirhams in the year-ago period, according to a bourse statement.
Chief Executive Hussein Hachem said while the firm was cautious, it looked forward to continuing its growth momentum. EFG Hermes and SICO Bahrain had forecast that the firm would make a quarterly net profit of 94.0 million dirhams and 77.5 million dirhams, respectively.
Fourth quarter revenue rose to 1.16 billion dirhams from 982 million dirhams in the year-ago quarter. Aramex said on October 3 it had established a joint venture e-commerce company with Australia Post, in a move that could herald a new expansion drive by the Dubai company.
In July, Dubai billionaire Mohamed Alabbar led two investor groups that bought a combined 16.45 percent stake in Aramex, while Australia Post bought 4.5 percent of Aramex around the same time.
An industry source said at the time that the Aramex stake was part of a strategy to build an e-commerce platform for the Arab world. Alabbar has since announced two regional e-commerce sites, including Noon, which involves Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).
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