A brighter future

Food and beverage operator Future Bright has seen a drastic reduction in its losses for the 2016-year, compared to the previous year, according to the group’s filing with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.
A 96.7 per cent year-on-year reduction in losses was recorded in the group’s 2016 fiscal year, ended December 31, amounting to HK$1.54 million (US$200,000/MOP1.59 million), as compared to the HK$45.9 million loss seen in 2015.
This comes despite just a 3.5 per cent uptick in turnover for the year, reaching HK$853.23 million, as compared to the HK$824.18 registered for full-2015.
By segment, the group saw its best results in its Food and Catering segment, which operates in both SARs as well as the mainland. Total revenue derived from this segment reached HK$781.6 million, with associated profit amounting to HK$27.4 million. The group’s Food Souvenir business, however, suffered a HK$26.1 million loss during the year, after generating just HK$50.5 million in revenue for the whole year; nonetheless, this was still a 49.3 per cent year-on-year reduction in the segment’s loss.
By territory, the group saw the lion’s share of its proceeds derived from its Macau operations, which amounted to HK$715.34 million in turnover during the year, overshadowing the HK$46.34 million earned in Hong Kong during the same period, as well as the HK$91.56 million earned in the mainland.
The executive director of the company is also local member of the Legislative Assembly, Chan Chak Mo.
As at the end of 2016, the group was operating a total of 43 restaurants in the MSAR, an increase of seven restaurants from 2015. It was also operating eight establishments in China as well as four in Hong Kong, a three-restaurant increase for each region. In total, the group operates 55 restaurants and four food court counters.

Property
The group’s six-storey commercial building, formerly housing clothing retailer Forever 21 and located next to the Ruins of St. Paul’s on the peninsula, brought in a total of HK$21.1 million during the year, according to the filing, representing a 30.4 per cent loss from the previous year. Overall the group’s property investment business saw net profit amounting to HK$10.5 million, a 68.2 per cent decrease compared to the previous year, which the group states as mainly attributable to ‘the decrease in rental income and the fair value losses from investment properties’.
The current investment properties held by the company and under construction on Hengqin Island were valued at HK$267.4 million.
Regarding a parcel of land under investigation by the Hengqin Island land authority for potentially being ‘idle’, the group notes that it has ‘made a submission to deny that the Group’s land on Hengqin Island has been an idle land, and the Group is still awaiting for the outcome of such submission’.
The group separately notes that it has ‘started foundation works for its property development project at its Hengqin Land,’ and ‘has applied for its application for extension of different development milestones and is still waiting for the outcomes of such application’.
The group notes that, relating to the ‘capital commitment, plan and work schedule’ for developing its Hengqin land, it has ‘a view to bring in an appropriate joint venture partner’