Seoul: South Korean food company CJ Cheiljedang Corp. announced Tuesday that its first-quarter net profit more than doubled compared to the same period last year, driven by foreign exchange gains from exports.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the company reported a net profit of 119.8 billion won (US$81.5 million) for the first three months of the year, marking an increase of 108.8 percent from the previous year. Despite this significant rise in net profit, the company's operating profit saw a decline of 28.5 percent year-on-year to 238.1 billion won during the January-March period, while revenue slightly decreased by 1.4 percent to 7.11 trillion won. These figures include earnings from its logistics affiliate, CJ Logistics Corp.

The operating profit fell short of the average estimate by 12.2 percent, as per a survey by Yonhap Infomax, the financial data arm of Yonhap News Agency. The decline in operating profit was attributed to reduced profitability in the bio business, which overshadowed the strong performance of the food segment. The company recorded 3.4 trillion won in food sales in the first quarter, up 3.9 percent from the previous year. Overseas food sales were bolstered by high demand for dumplings and rice products, while domestic sales benefited from new products related to the Netflix cooking competition series "Culinary Class Wars."

The bio business, however, reported sales of 988.7 billion won and an operating profit of 5.5 billion won, with operating profit plummeting 92.4 percent from the previous year due to lower prices for high-value-added products amid rising competition. Looking ahead to the second quarter, CJ Cheiljedang plans to intensify efforts to expand its overseas business in North America and Europe to enhance profitability.