Fonterra defers annual results reporting date

Dairy giant Fonterra has delayed the announcement of its annual results, saying more time is needed to complete its financial statements.

The co-op was due to report its audited financial results for the 2019 financial year (FY19) ended 31 July 2019 on 12th September.

It had earlier flagged a loss of up to $675 million due to write-downs on its assets, as it tries to turnaround its financial woes.

In a statement, Fonterra said it would now report no later than 30th September, saying it needed more time to prepare the accounts.

"On 12 August 2019, Fonterra announced a number of asset writedowns and one-off accounting adjustments, noting that the numbers remained subject to Fonterra Board reviewing the full financial statements and audit adjustments," it said.

"Due to the significant accounting adjustments in FY19, as set out in the announcement on 12 August 2019, more time is required to complete the audited financial statements." 

It also confirmed its previous announcement that it expects a reported loss of $590-$675 million for FY19, which is a 37 to 42 cent loss per share. 

"All numbers are subject to the Board reviewing the full financial statements and to audit adjustments, and reflect the values attributable to equity holders."

The change in reporting date was unrelated to any discussions with the Financial Markets Authority, recent speculation about further material asset impairments, or other announcements. 

It said it also does not affect the Co-operative's ability in any way to operate and pay its bills, including paying farmers for their milk. 

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