Despite Sales Soaring 73 Percent, Autopedia Owned By Conglomerate TP Rachmat Must Record Loss Of IDR 2 Billion Due To Increase In Operating Expensesl

Photo: Doc. Autopedia Success Lestari

JAKARTA - PT Autopedia Sukses Lestari Tbk (ASLC) managed to record a sales jump of 73 percent to IDR 159.5 billion in Semester I-2022. The sales achievement of the issuer, which is engaged in the auction and retail trade of used cars belonging to the conglomerate TP Rachmat, is due to the intensive expansion carried out.

The increase in sales was achieved in line with the company's new business expansion, namely by opening eight new points for O2O (online-to-offline) used car dealer services with the Caroline brand in the second quarter of this year.

In addition, in line with the expansion of the O2O business, the Company's sales operating expenses in Semester I-2022 increased 18 percent yoy, from IDR 58.4 billion in the same period in 2021 to IDR 69.2 billion. As a result, ASLC recorded a net loss of Rp2 billion compared to a net profit of IDR 16.4 billion in the same period the previous year.

“From the significant increase in used car sales, we can see that the expansion carried out by the Company has paid off. Therefore, we are optimistic that the Company will continue to record better performance in the future," said President Director of Autopedia Sukses Lestari, Jany Chandra in a statement, Wednesday, July 27.

Nevertheless, the company remains focused on ensuring that all businesses that have been and will be explored have positive trading margins and a sustainable business model, and hopes for a speedy recovery for the auction business in the third quarter of 2022. The company expects to record a net profit after moving away from the rapid expansion phase.

Meanwhile, for the used vehicle auction business, sales during the first semester of 2022 still experienced a decline of around 27 percent yoy. This is caused by several external factors that have an impact on the financing sector, which is one of the main sources of supply of used vehicles.

The finance sector was hit so hard by the 2020-21 pandemic that it was forced to significantly reduce the disbursement of their vehicle purchase loans to consumers. As a result, the number of towing vehicles (confiscated) decreased over the next few years.

Furthermore, used car retailers also extend the service life of their cars, thereby delaying selling cars through auctions. This happened because the supply of new vehicles was hampered by the scarcity of microchips that continued until Q2 2022.

Furthermore, ASLC hopes that the Company's sales will increase even more rapidly, in line with the government's policy to limit the use of subsidized fuel oil (BBM) types of pertalite and diesel.

"If cars with large engine capacity (cc) are prohibited from using pertalite and diesel, automatically cars with small engine capacity (cc) will be more attractive because they can use cheaper fuel," said JANY.