APN loss due to NZ revaluation

APN News and Media reported a loss for 2011 after incurring an impairment charge on its New Zealand assets.

The group, in which Independent News & Media has a 30.4 per cent share holding, said net profit after tax was 78 million Australian dollars before the impact of exceptional items was taken into account. That represented a 24 per cent decline, but was in line with previous guidance.

A non-cash impairment charge of A$156 million due to a revaluation of its metropolitan newspapers in New Zealand, which was reported in August, reversed that to a loss after tax of A$45 million.

Revenue at the group was up 1 per cent to almost A$1.1 billion, while earnings before interest and tax fell 17 per cent to A$171 million, weighed down by the group’s publishing operations in Australia and New Zealand.

A cost-cutting programme generated A$25 million in savings on an annualised basis.