Henry Bath soaks up 300% profits hike
INTERNATIONAL metals warehousing and shipping group Henry Bath & Son saw profits surge more than 300% last year as the value of base metals soared.
The historic Liverpool company, which was sold last month, along with other businesses for $1.7bn by the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Sempra venture to a division of investment bank JP Morgan, has operations in Europe and around the world with bases in Dubai, Singapore, South Korea, China, Spain, Turkey and the US.
Headquartered at Princes Dock in Liverpool, Henry Bath specialises in the storage and transportation of commodities including aluminium, copper, zinc, lead, nickel, tin, aluminium alloy, cocoa, coffee and plastics.
Turnover more than doubled, from $121.3m (£77.5m) in 2008 to $282.1m (£180.2m) and profits rocketed from $31.4m £20m) to $131.3m £83.9m), an increase of 319%.
Managing director Peter Sellars said in his review of the year: “This year’s financial results show a significant improvement on the previous year.
“The global economic downturn has benefited the company with a rapid growth in London Metal Exchange base metal stocks during the first half of 2009, consequently showing in this year’s improved results.
“The directors are of the opinion that the company will continue to trade profitably in the coming year.”
Writing last month Mr Sellars adds: “The current state of the economy may lead to a fall in trading volumes which may in turn lead to a decline in profitability. The company has a significant level of retained reserves, and earns its revenues from affiliated companies which have a wide geographical spread, which helps to mitigate these risks.”
Founded as a copper trading business in 1794 Henry Bath was a founder member of the London Metals Exchange in 1877. It was a private family business until the 1970s when it changed hands several times in a short period.
The first sale was to the British Bank of Commerce, and then ownership passed to Australian mining group MIM Holdings and then Germany’s Metallgesellschaft.
