Grasim Industries net profi dips 4.5% on taxes, weak rupee

MUMBAI: Grasim Industries, part of the Aditya Birla Group, on Friday said its June quarter net profit fell 4.5% due to increased taxes and a falling rupee that offset gains from lower coal prices.

The company, however, announced plans to spend about Rs 8,000 crore in the current year, bucking a wider industry trend that has seen most companies rein in expansion plans due to an overall economic slowdown.

Mumbai-based Grasim’s profit in the April-June period fell to Rs 718 crore from Rs 752 crore last year, while sales rose 16% to Rs 6,832 crore on the back of higher volumes.

Grasim, through subsidiary UltraTech, is India’s largest maker of cement and is the world’s second-largest producer of fibre, which is used as an alternate to cotton.

“Our profit from operations are better despite challenging market conditions , mainly due to higher sales volume in the cement business,” said Grasim CFO Adesh Gupta, adding that the fall in net profit is due to a higher minority interest in companies where Grasim doesn’t hold a controlling stake.