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SINGAPORE : Singapore-listed healthcare provider Parkway Holdings has reported a 2 per cent dip in earnings in the first half of this year to S$40 million, due to one-off gains from last year and the net effect of a REIT transaction.
Group revenue rose 12 per cent to S$464,847, thanks to strong overseas contributions. International revenue streams saw a 20 per cent increase on-year to about 30 per cent of the total.
Looking abroad, the Middle East remains a key target market for the group.
Lim Cheok Peng, group president & CEO of Parkway Holdings, said: "What we need to do is go out into the non-traditional markets, advertise our services and look for new patients to come to Singapore for treatment...
"We are targeting the Middle East such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as Russia... We are also looking towards the West, like the US and Canada."
Meanwhile, Parkway is also gearing up its hospital facilities in Singapore to cope with the anticipated influx of foreign patients.
In February this year, it bought a new land parcel in Singapore's Novena area for S$1.2 billion to build a 300-bed hospital.
Earlier in the year, Parkway raised almost S$786 million from a rights issue. The health provider said it has its hands full for the next three to five years and will be injecting the funds raised into current projects in Mumbai, Malaysia, and the Novena project in Singapore.
Once ongoing projects have matured, Parkway expects the revenue contribution to be evenly split between local and overseas operations.
"Over the next three to five years, we will be evaluating other projects. What we are also looking at is consultancy projects coming to us from the Middle East as well as from China," said Lim.
Parkway has announced a one-tier interim dividend of 1.23 cents per ordinary share for the second quarter of 2008.
As the group seeks to grow its revenue from overseas markets, it faces a shortage of healthcare professionals such as nurses.
It is hoping to boost the manpower numbers through its Parkway College in the next three to five years. This means training some 5,000 students in the college, 10 times more than currently.
The group said it hopes to hit the 2,500-student mark next year. And going forward, it will be looking for a potential property to lease to move its campus and cater to 5,000 students. - CNA /ls
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