Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Tuesday, Apr 15, 2003
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Tuesday, Apr 15, 2003 |
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Corporate
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Outlook Jisco poised to end fiscal in profit Latha Venkatraman
MUMBAI, April 14 AFTER two years of reporting losses, Jindal Iron & Steel Company Ltd (Jisco) is expected to end the 2002-03 fiscal on a profitable note, facilitated by an upturn in steel prices, improved overseas demand and the company's efforts at driving operational efficiency which have brought costs down. Despite a dip in steel prices, Jisco is expected to post profits. "We are booked until June 2003, so we will go into the first quarter of the next fiscal also comfortably,'' Mr Raman Madhok, Joint Managing Director and CEO, Jisco, said.The company had reported a net loss of Rs 68.54 crore for the year ended March 31, 2002 and a net loss of Rs 96.52 crore in the previous year. But for the 2002-03 fiscal, the company had been in profitable mode with nine-month period profits at Rs 54.82 crore. Net sales for this period stood at Rs 1,019.82 crore, only slightly lower than the 2001-02 full-year net income of Rs 1,043.54 crore. A decline in steel prices could worry Indian steel companies, most of which are battling huge debt. A fall in steel prices is on account of a glut in the Chinese market. However, Jisco is positioned at the upper end of the steel market as it mainly deals in galvanised steel. In any price movement scenario, galvanised steel is impacted last, according to Mr Madhok. The war in Iraq should throw up new opportunities for the steel industry, he added. Post-war reconstruction may result in some demand for steel. "In galvanised steel, we are the largest in West Asia.'' Mr Madhok is also confident that demand for galvanised steel from India in that region could pick up primarily because of the freight advantage, since steel is freight-sensitive. Galvanised steel exports to the region account for 18-20 per cent of Jisco's monthly shipments. .
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