Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), on Monday, reported a 64 per cent dip in its net profit at Rs.205.62 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2011, as its sales dropped due to strike in Manesar plant and the depreciation of the rupee.
The country's largest car-maker's net sales (net of excise) were Rs.7,663.60 crore, a drop of 17.4 per cent over the same period in the previous year. During the quarter, the company sold 2.11-lakh units in the domestic market against 2.99-lakh units, while exports stood at 27,725 units against 31,160 units in the year-ago period. Unit sales were impacted by sluggish market conditions caused by higher fuel prices and interest rates. Additionally, the company lost around 40,000 units in production due to the industrial relations problem at Manesar (Haryana).
The depreciation of the rupee during the quarter adversely impacted the bottom-line through higher cost of imports for MSIL and its vendors, the company said in a statement.
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In 2011-12 so far (April to December 2011), MSIL net sales (net of excise) stood at Rs.23,521 crore, a drop of 10.4 per cent over the same period in the previous year. The net profit was Rs.995.30 crore, down 38.9 per cent. During this period, the company sold 6.84-lakh units in the domestic market and 88,469 units in overseas markets.
PTI reports:
The rate of decline in profit is the sharpest since the third quarter of 2008-09, when the company had reported around 55 per cent drop in its bottom line. On unfavourable currency movement, Chief Financial Officer Ajay Seth told analysts in a conference call that the company suffered a total foreign exchange loss of Rs.200 crore in the third quarter on a year-on-year basis. Despite the poor results, the company's shares closed 5.77 per cent higher at Rs.1,162.55 on the BSE on Monday.
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