Johannesburg — SET Point Group has warned shareholders that full-year profits could be lower than the previous period as it does not anticipate trading conditions improving.

Set Point provides a variety of products for the mining industry, including technology services through its three divisions - analytical services, fluid handling and mining services.

The full-year profits could also be hit by the costs of its delisting, should it be approved by shareholders, as the company would have to pay out shareholders not planning on remaining investors.

Set Point has offered its shareholders who are not planning on owning shares in the company after the delisting 90c a share. Set Point wants to delist because the market appetite for small listed companies is unfavourable and is not expected to improve. It said there were no material benefits to being listed and it also wanted to save costs associated with the listing.

The group posted a 30% decline in headline earnings per share to 4,5c for the first half to last month.

Operating profit decreased 29% to R22,8m due largely to the decline in mining exploration, which directly affected the performance of Set Point's assay laboratory. Revenue declined 5% to R172,9m.

"Despite improving global commodity prices, an upturn in the mining sector has not yet materialised and general trading conditions were difficult for the group," the company said. The analytical services division, which offers chemical analyses for the monitoring of fluids - mainly oil and ore body analyses for the mining and exploration industry - posted a 12,2% drop in revenue to R52,5m.

Operating profit decreased 41,4% to R11,7m as a result of curtailed mineral exploration activity and a marked slowdown in platinum mining production.

The fluid handling division, which supplies products to the mining and petrochemical industries, has sustained revenue at the cost of a slight reduction in operating margins. Operating profit was R16,6m from R17,1m the previous period. The mining services division reported a decline in revenue to R36,2m from R35,8m. Operating profit was unchanged at R2,3m.

Set Point's shares gained 3c to close at 89c yesterday.