JK Tyre & Industries (JK Tyre) on Tuesday has reported a consolidated net profit of ₹144 crore, a sharp decline of 42 per cent year-on-year (y-o-y) as against ₹250 crore in the same month last fiscal.

Consolidated revenues of the company also declined 7 per cent y-o-y to ₹3,643 crore during the quarter ended September 30, from ₹3,905 crore in the year-ago period.

“Operating profit margins were affected by a sharp rise in natural rubber prices, driven by adverse weather conditions and supply chain disruptions. However, the impact was partially mitigated through judicious price increase, product premiumisation and strategic inventory built up,” said Raghupati Singhania, Chairman and MD, JK Tyre.

He also said that the company maintained it’s volumes and presence in the passenger car segment despite lower demand. Commercial vehicle segment also witnessed slackening attributed to the general elections and unusual heavy rains affecting revenue growth during the quarter, he said.

“Improved export performance helped partly offset the domestic slowdown. JK Tyre continues to enjoy the highest market share across all OEM (original equipment manufacturer) and replacement markets in EV bus category...As we move into the second half of the year, we expect demand to improve, driven by the festive season, resumption of government infrastructure spends and normalisation of construction, industrial and mining activities post heavy rain,” said Singhania.

JK Tyre’s subsidiaries, Cavendish Industries (CIL) and JK Tornel, Mexico, also contributed to overall revenues and profitability of the company, he added.

Shares of JK Tyre closed at ₹388 apiece on the BSE on Tuesday, down 0.69 per cent from the previous close.