De Bortoli wines, one of Australia's largest family-owned wine groups, has slumped to a $24.7 million full-year loss after export sales were crunched by the strengthening dollar and the value of its equities investment portfolio sank by nearly $50 million. Previously De Bortoli's stockmarket plays had been a wind in its sails, with profits from its stock trading eclipsing wine earnings in 2011, but a series of poor investment decisions, including a huge exposure to collapsed North Queensland mining giant Kagara, has shunted the Griffith-based wine group deep into the red.
HT1
KZL Price at posting:
12.0¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Not Held