The Hindu Business Line : Tata Motors Q3 net rises 12 pc

Advertisement

Mumbai Jan. 23 A spurt in sales of commercial vehicles and a foreign exchange windfall helped Tata Motors to register a 12 per cent jump in its net profit for the third quarter ended December 31, 2006 to touch Rs 513.17 crore, against Rs 460.23 crore in the corresponding quarter of last fiscal.

The company's revenue for the quarter rose 37 per cent to Rs 6,956.84 crore (Rs 5,074.86 crore).

There was, however, a marginal dip in its international business during the quarter, as the company had to pull out of some export markets to duck the adverse exchange rate fluctuations.

The consolidated revenue of the company for the quarter was Rs 8,176.03 crore, an increase of 37 per cent, while its consolidated net profit was Rs 602.07 crore, up by 9 per cent as compared to the year-ago quarter.

The volume of vehicle sales rose to 1.41 lakhs in the last quarter (1.11 lakh units), an increase of 28 per cent.

The sales in the first nine months of the current fiscal crossed 4.07 lakh units, with this period seeing the launch of a new Tata Safari range, face-lifted Indigo Sedan and Indigo Marina range and a new 1.2 l engine option on the Indica V2 Xeta range.

International Business

Talking to press persons, Mr Ravi Kant, Managing Director of Tata Motors, said the adverse exchange rate had led to the company pulling out of certain geographies. "However, we are going back into the (global) markets from this quarter," he added.

Mr Kant said, the exchange risk fluctuations have prompted the company to cobble together a new strategy to de-risk its international business from such risk. The new strategy will lead the company to have a broader portfolio of geographies and consolidate its "physical presence" in the international market.

"By just exporting, you cannot effectively de-risk the international business. You need to have a physical presence (in those markets) to reduce the risks," he pointed out.

In a response to a question, he said the company's foreign exchange exposure at any given point of time was $1 billion.

Rs 1 lakh car project

On the company's Rs 1 lakh a car project, Mr Kant said machines have begun to arrive at the project site at Singur in West Bengal and efforts were on by the company to make up for the lost time. "The 2008 deadline still holds good as of now," he said.

He said Fiat, which has recently concluded a joint venture agreement with Tata Motors, had offered to help with technological and other inputs for the small car project. Tata Motors shares fell to Rs 950.05 on Tuesday BSE from the previous close of Rs 954.40.

More Stories on : Financial Performance | HCV/LCV/Tractors | Tata Motors Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Below normal rainfall likely in S. India

Centre bans futures trading in tur, urad

Bharti Airtel buys out SingTel's stake in cable co

Nil import duty hits cement shares

Grasim Q3 net doubles on higher sales realisations

Customs duty cut may hit revenues by Rs 3,000 cr

Centre may impose ceiling on sugar exports

SBI net down 4.49 pc on higher provisioning

SBI cost of funds may see a sharp jump

Tata Motors Q3 net rises 12 pc

India-WI match on DD, at 7-min delay

Ahmednagar Forgings strong on biz

Phillips Carbon up on demand

AIF Capital gets nod to invest in Catholic Syrian