Bosch Ltd, a leading supplier of technology and services, has posted a 20.2 per cent decline in net profit to Rs 111 crore during the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2014 on account of restructuring costs and higher wages. It had registered net profit of Rs 139 crore during the corresponding quarter of previous year.
It posted net sales and income from operations to the tune of Rs 2,548.50 crore registering a 13.1 per cent increase as compared to Rs 2,255.10 crore during the same quarter of the previous year, the company said in its BSE release.
The company in a statement said the drop in net profit was because of one-time effects such as organisational restructuring costs consequent to recent wage settlement negotiations and associate retirement benefit costs due to a sharp decline in discounting rates in India.
“Bosch Ltd has registered a good growth in the fourth quarter of 2014-15, above the growth of the country’s automotive market and partly reflecting improvements in the heavy commercial vehicle (HCV) and three-wheeler segments. In spite of some one-time effects, our focus on operational efficiencies and productivity has continued to yield good results in the fourth quarter, the same as in the full year of 2014,” said Dr. Steffen Berns, managing director of Bosch Ltd and president of Bosch Group in India.
He said the company is well prepared for the anticipated market recovery and future growth with proactive spending on capital expenditure for infrastructure and technology. The market performance of the coming quarters will be determined by factors such as fuel prices, interest rates and execution of infrastructure and mining projects. The union budget will also have a major impact on consumption at large, he pointed out.
The company’s mobility solutions business in India grew 12.4 percent in December quarter 2014-15 over the corresponding quarter of 2013-14. The diesel systems division was particularly strong, mainly due to recovery in the heavy commercial vehicle market.
In January 2015, Bosch’s gasoline systems division opened a new manufacturing facility in Gangaikondan in Tamil Nadu. Built with an investment of around Rs 50 crore and spread across 6,500 square metres of built up area, this new plant will facilitate the gasoline systems business to further localise manufacturing and increase cost-competitiveness. The company’s business sectors besides mobility solutions grew 15.4 per cent, due to strong growth in the energy business and a high demand for solutions of Bosch’s security technology division.