The following are the significant milestones of Benguetrade, Inc., a fully owned subsidiary of Benguet Management Corporation, which is primarily into the TRADING BUSINESS:
1994
- Established as the Trading Division of Benguet Management Corporation in July of this year primarily to service the equipment, materials and supplies needs of Benguet Corporation.
1995 - Expanded its product mix from two to more than 20 lines and services, its market coverage to include other major mines and selected companies from other industries.
1996
- Started developing "niche" products for the long term, notably Christensen (USA) drilling equipment, accessories and parts; Mecal (Australia) lifting magnets, industrial vacuum cleaners, dust suppression systems and telescopic chutes; and Goretex (USA via Singapore) filterbags and cartridges. However, the main source of revenue continued to be the Division's commodity lines.
1997
- BMC Trading Division was organized into a separate corporation called Benguetrade, Inc. Incorporation was approved in March while commercial operations commenced on May 8.
1998
- Benguetrade, Inc. completes its first year of operations amidst the prevailing economic difficulties in the country and in the Asian region. At this time, three-quarters of Benguetrade's sales are attributed to non-Benguet clients. In spite of significant setbacks caused by foreign exchange transactional losses and deferred capital equipment purchases by its major clients, the Company expects to end the year profitably.
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