SkyPeople Fruit Juice has recorded a drop in nine-month profits

SkyPeople Fruit Juice has recorded a drop in profits in the first nine months of 2011.

For the period to the end of September, net profits dropped by 14% to US$8.6m, the soft drinks producer said yesterday (15 November). Operating profits declined by 23.5% on the same period of 2010, to $12.4m, while net sales amounted to $49.1m, a 0.6% drop.

This decrease was due to a decrease in sales of concentrated kiwifruit juice pear juice and kiwifruit puree and fresh fruits, said the firm, which operates in China.

In the third quarter, net profits were down by 49% to $1.8m, while operating profits dropped by 47.9% to $2.8m. Sales in the period amounted to $17.4m, a 4% decline on the prior-year period.

"Both our third quarter and year-to-date revenues were slightly lower ... due to the shortage of a variety of fresh fruit ... and drove up costs as a result of a relatively poor growing season and delayed harvest," said SkyPeople Fruit Juice's CEO, Yongke Xue.

"However, on the bright side, the sales of our concentrated apple and apple aroma tripled in the third quarter relative to the year-ago quarter and almost compensated for this loss in revenue across our segment base," he added.

Click here to view the full earnings release.