SFE Announces 2002 Half Year Results

SFE Corporation today released its financial results for the half year ending 30 June 2002. The full financial results for this period are attached to this release. The highlights include:

• Net profit after tax (NPAT) was $12.9 million, up from $11.8 million for the comparable prior half.
• Revenue (excluding interest) of $48.3 million, up from $45.7 million for the comparable prior half.
• Cash operating expenses (excluding interest) of $29.2 million, down from $29.9 million for the comparable prior half.
• An interim dividend of 4.9 cents per share, fully franked representing 50% of the underlying NPAT attributable to SFE shareholders and an increase of 0.6 cents over the prior comparable interim dividend.

In releasing the results SFE's Managing Director and CEO, Robert Elstone, Said " In our second year as a demutualised corporation it is pleasing to continue to see our performance indicators trending in the right direction for shareholders at the same time as striving to meet our customers' service requirements and maintaining our front line regulatory responsibilities.

Significant initiatives completed during the six month period included the assumption of Commonwealth Government Securities (CGS) clearing and settlement arrangements from the Reserve Bank of Australia in late February, the outsourcing of clearing technology and software development to a hub in Sydney operated by OM Technology AB at the start of April and a successful listing on the ASX in mid April.

Based on management initiatives in place for the half and others planned for the second half, as noted at the AGM in May, we believe that we will achieve another satisfactory full year result for 2002."

For additional information please read the attached full report.