India“s Tata Chemicals Ltd (TCL) reported on 18 January 2005 a 63.29% rise in profit after tax to INR 965.9 million for the 3Q ended 31 December 2004, versus the previous corresponding INR 591.5 mill…
India“s Tata Chemicals Ltd (TCL) reported on 18 January 2005 a 63.29% rise in profit after tax to INR 965.9 million for the 3Q ended 31 December 2004, versus the previous corresponding INR 591.5 million. During the period, the company“s net sales/income from operations increased by 37.65% to INR 10.39 billion from INR 7.548 billion for the year ago period. Profit from operations improved by 8% for the quarter to INR 1.31 million (INR 1.2 billion) but slipped slightly at the nine-month level to INR 3.82 billion (INR 3.85 billion). The downward adjustment was attributed to the high prices of coking coal, coke, phosphoric acid and ammonia during the fiscal 1H. Chief Financial Officer Mr P.K. Ghose said that neither raw material prices nor freight rates have not increased much of late but they have not decreased either. The company“s share of the Indian soda ash market is 30%. Soda ash exports in the 3Q touched 46,600 MT or 44% of Indian exports of the item. Demand outlook for soda ash, particularly from the glass segment, remains strong both domestically and globally. Interest costs for the quarter fell by 48% to INR 60 million. For the nine-month period, the company posted a net profit of INR 2.29 billion (INR 1.9 billion) on net sales/income from operations of INR 22.89 billion (INR 19.79 billion).