Minth Group Limited Business Report FY ended Dec. 2015
Financial overview
| (in million yuan) | FY ended Dec. 31, 2015 | FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 | Rate of Change | Factors |
| Sales | 7,654.12 | 6,683.88 | 14.52% | -Steady growth in overseas markets; -Global orders increased due to global vehicle increaed; |
| Gross profit | 2,427.69 | 2,085.21 | 16.42% | -Improve productivity and efficiency of control -Improve material utilization -Implementation of centralized procurement |
| Profit before tax | 1,568.78 | 1,355.76 | 15.71% | |
| Profit for the year | 1,319.71 | 1,152.93 | 14.47% |
1)
-The Company's overseas turnover grew to approximately CNY 3,044.01 million, representing an increase of approximately 19.2% year-on-year.(From the Company's 2015 annual report)
Gross Profit
-In 2015, the Company's gross fit margin was approximately 31.7%, representing a year-on-year decrease of approximately 0.5% from the 31.2% achieved in 2014. Through continuous improvement of manufacturing processes and technologies, better utilizing materials and implementation of centralized procurement, the Company continued to enhance the efficiency of both production and management to maintain the overall gross profit margin at a decent level. (From the Company's 2015 annual report)
New Company
-Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, announced that the company and Fujitsu Electronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. will establish a joint venture. The new company will be called F&M Technology Limited, and will mainly produce and sell automotive camera modules. It will be capitalized at CNY 5.2 million, of which 60% will be invested by Cheerplan (China) and 40% will be invested by Fujitsu Electronics (Shanghai). (From an announcement by the company on April 22, 2016)
-Cheerplan (China) Investment Co., Ltd., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, and Haartz Corporation, a U.S. based supplier of interior trim material, have jointly established Haartz-Minth (Ningbo) Automotive Ltd. in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, China. The joint venture is capitalized at USD 12 million, of which 40% was invested by Cheerplan (China) and 60% was invested by Haartz Corporation. The new company will produce and sell soft interior trim materials for automobiles. (From an announcement by the company on April 22, 2016)
-The Company announced that the company and U.S.-based Haartz Corporation will establish a joint venture in Ningbo, Zhejiang Province. The new company will be called Haartz-Minth (Ningbo) Automotive Ltd. It will produce thermoplastic olefin materials for automotive interior parts such as door panels, instrument panels, and consoles using Haartz' extrusion molding technology. Production is scheduled to begin in the second half of 2017. (From news releases issued by multiple sources on April 13, 2016)
Acquisition
-The Company announced that the company plans to turn Jiaxing Dura Minth Automotive Parts Co., Ltd., its joint venture with Dura, its wholly owned subsidiary by acquiring the 51% share owned by Dura for CNY 56.42 million. Minth and Dura have reached an agreement on this plan. (From an announcement by the company on December 31, 2015)
R&D activities
-The Group has R & D centers in China, Japan, North America and Germany.
R&D facilities
| Company Name | R&D activities | Location | Shareholding (%) |
| Shanghai Cogen Research and Design Co., Ltd. | Design of automobile exterior and interior decorative parts | Shanghai | 100 |
| Ningbo Minth Automotive Parts Research & Development Co., Ltd. | Design consulting on stamping dies and auto parts | Ningbo Zhejiang |
100 |
R&D Expenditure
|
FY ended Dec. 31, 2015 |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2014 (million yuan) |
FY ended Dec. 31, 2013 (million yuan) |
|
| R&D Expenditure | 330.57 | 298.71 | 259.78 |
| Ratio of R&D expenses to | 4.32% | 4.47% | 4.71% |
Patents
-In 2015, the Group filed 159 patent applications for approval and 166 patent applications were authorised by the competent institutions.
Technical alliance
| Partner | Agreement |
| Sankei Giken Holdings Co.,Ltd. | To provide technology, technological support, and expertise on certain types of auto-parts to the Group and to grant non-exclusive rights to use the technological expertise to manufacture auto-parts for Guangzhou Honda and Dongfeng Honda (Wuhan ). |
| AAPICO Hitech Public Company Limited | To provide technical services and activities related to the design, manufacture, sale, import, export and after-sales services of automobile components in Thailand. |
| Tokai Kogyo Co., Ltd. | To provide technological support. |