Seafield qualifies statement

SEAFIELD, the transport and distribution group, yesterday updated a trading statement it issued last Friday.

The company said last week it had made an unaudited operating profit of pounds 348,000 in the first quarter. The new statement, also put out through the Stock Exchange, said first-quarter operating profits had been pounds 402,000 in 1993, 16 per cent higher than this year's.

Seafield said the earlier figure included a big food distribution contract that ended in July 1993. Excluding this, last year's first- quarter profits were pounds 280,000. Brian Chilver, chairman, said: 'The rise of 24 per cent in profit in the ongoing business is an indication of the progress being made.'

The company said the reason for putting out an additional statement was that meetings with institutional shareholders had begun this week, and there was an interest in comparing this year and last.

The Seafield board faces a challenge from rebel shareholders, who hope to replace Mr Chilver at an extraordinary meeting to be held on 10 June. Both sides in the row are presenting their case to other shareholders.

A spokesman for John East, the stockbroker acting for the dissident shareholders, said: 'When we saw the first announcement we were pleased to see things were going well, but it was the first time they had ever issued a quarterly statement. We got on to the Stock Exchange to say, should there not be a comparative statement?'