SIMIC

 Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co., a major South Korean shipbuilder, said Friday that its first-quarter net profit rose 24.2 percent from a year earlier due to increased one-off gains and a weak won.

Net profit reached 243 billion won (US$197 million) in the January-March period, compared with 195 billion won a year ago, Daewoo Shipbuilding said in a regulatory filing.

The company said it received about 200 billion won in additional payment from an unidentified client over an offshore project, which improved its bottom line.

The company said a weak won also helped the quarterly result.

The won’s weakness against the dollar drove up the value of exports when repatriated into the local currency.

The dollar rose to an average of 1,193.60 won in the first quarter from 1,125.08 won a year earlier, according to the Bank of Korea.

Operating profit jumped 40 percent on-year to 279 billion won, while sales fell 5.5 percent on-year to 1.95 trillion won, according to the company.

Shares in Daewoo Shipbuilding rose 1.54 percent to 16,500 won, outperforming the broader KOSPI’s 0.12 percent gain.