The GijimaAst share was trading 9.1% lower this morning after the group issued a mixed trading update after the market closed last night.
By 9.48am, the share was trading at 70c, which is 7c down on yesterday`s close. This was after 2.16 million shares changed hands in 65 deals. In earlier trade, the share touched as low as 65c.
According to the trading statement, the group`s basic earnings per share for the six months to end-December are expected to increase to between 0.2c and 1.1c.
This compares with a loss of 41.5c a share for the same period the previous year.
However, headline earnings per share (HEPS) are expected to fall to between 0.2c and 1.1c from year-earlier HEPS of 6.18c.
The group says the number of shares in issue - on which the figures are calculated - rose from 354.78 million on 31 December 2004 to 964.67 million on 31 December 2005.
"Earnings for the six months ended 31 December 2005 were negatively impacted by foreign currency translation losses of R12.7 million, or 1.32c per share," GijimaAst says in its trading update.
"These losses arose as a result of foreign currency movements and in particular the strong performance of the rand against major currencies and had no impact on cash flows or operations."
For the year to June 2005, GijimaAst incurred a basic loss of 20.54c a share, an improvement on the 92.51c loss for the previous year. HEPS of 6.78c compared with a prior-year headline loss of 9.15c a share.
This was on turnover of R1.59 billion, which compared with a prior-year figure of R1.73 billion.
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