Farm and construction equipments manufacturer Escorts Limited on Monday reported a profit of ₹16 crore in the quarter ending September 30 as against a loss of ₹8 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
Net sales of the company were also down 19 per cent to Rs 798 crore during the quarter as against ₹986 crore in the July-September last year.
The company recorded tractor sales of 11,438 units for current quarter.
“The tractor industry has been adversely impacted by the poor and uneven monsoon. The impact of poor monsoons has been accentuated by the cyclical nature of the industry,” Rajan Nanda, Chairman, Escorts, said.
There is farm distress that is getting reflected in the overall industry recording steep drop in tractor sales though there are indications that the second half will show better results, he said.
According to Nikhil Nanda, Managing Director, Escorts, “The focus continues to be maintaining profitability through growth and cost management. In a tough market with dropping volumes, we have increased our market share in tractors which is a small but significant win.”
“As the economy picks up, we expect greater traction in the Railways and Construction business,” he added.