Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) suffered from lower prevailing steel prices and lack of demand as its net profit for the second quarter of 2014-15 dropped by 45 per cent. The company’s net profit during the quarter stood at ₹649.49 crore compared to ₹1,180.39 crore in the corresponding quarter of the last fiscal.

During the quarter, the company’s net revenues increased only 1.3 per cent to ₹11,678.67 crore from ₹11,519.78 crore in the same quarter last year.

Average steel prices have been on a downward trend and have fallen by about one per cent since the first quarter of the 2014-15 fiscal, steel industry analysts said.

SAIL was expected to benefit from lower raw material cost but the savings were offset by higher outgo on account of its power and fuel bill.

On Thursday, SAIL’s shares dropped by 0.86 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange to close at ₹80.30.