JSE-listed logistics company OneLogix has advised its shareholders to expect a drop of between 60% and 80% year-on-year in earnings a share to between 2.5c and 5c for the financial year ended May 31.

Similarly, headline earnings per share (HEPS) are also expected to decrease by between 55% and 75% year-on-year to between 2.8c and 5c.

Core HEPS are expected to decrease by between 50% and 70% to between 4.1c and 6.8c.

“This financial year has been difficult . . . Despite the country’s emergence from the restrictions of the protracted Covid-19 lockdowns, the local and regional economies remained comparatively listless.

“Within this sluggish economic environment, it has become increasingly costly to conduct a logistics business in South and Southern Africa, primarily due to the inability to recover various rising costs from our value chain,” OneLogix said in a statement on August 8.

The company said trading conditions were exacerbated by the reduced economic activity during and after the civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal in July last year, which was later compounded by the cyber-attack on State-owned Transnet’s operations, further curtailing the flow of goods into and out of South Africa.

OneLogix said the persistent violent protests on South Africa’s national road network continued to present a significant challenge, while the extensive infrastructural damage caused by flooding in KwaZulu-Natal in April further aggravated an already strained trading scenario.

The company said a large-scale hailstorm during September last year, which mainly affected the OneLogix Vehicle Delivery Service (VDS), caused considerable damage to a few large shipments of passenger vehicles being processed into the Umlaas road open staging facility, resulting in the company having to carry the risk for all minor repairs.

This incurred an expected claim cost, net of insurance proceeds, of R25-million.

In addition, OneLogix VDS and, to a lesser extent, OneLogix TruckLogix, experienced reduced storage volumes resulting from global supply chain disruptions upon the completion of the new Umlaas road phase three storage facility in January last year.

OneLogix said this contributed to an additional R66-million in lease-related International Financial Reporting Standard 16 – or IFRS16 – accounting costs for the year.

“Notwithstanding these considerable headwinds, some of the group’s businesses performed above expectations and, on balance, each of the . . . businesses remain well positioned in their respective markets, with resilient and innovative management teams together with a strong customer base that will ensure sustainability,” OneLogix assured.

The company said current agreements with finance providers, based on expected results, are projected to be met with sufficient headroom, and that OneLogix had

adequate resources and access to facilities to fund operations for the foreseeable future.

OneLogix’s audited results for the current year are expected to be released on August 25.