Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) has reported a three per cent rise in standalone profits for the March quarter aided by higher sales volumes and pricing.
The country's largest steel producer reported a net profit of Rs 1,577 crore for the quarter ended March 2012, against a net of Rs 1,531 crore in the corresponding period last year. SAIL registered a 13 per cent rise in income for the quarter at Rs 15,079 crore against Rs 13,339 crore in the corresponding last.
The public sector steel major beat rivals Tata Steel and JSW Steel in profit growth for the March quarter that saw a rebound in consumption from sectors such as infrastructure and construction. However, the company's profits for 2011-2012 were down 28 per cent at Rs 3,543 crore against Rs 4,905 crore in the previous year. The turnover for the fiscal 2012 was up seven per cent at Rs 50,348 crore against Rs 47,041 crore in the previous year.
The SAIL Chairman, Mr C.S. Verma, attributed the slump in fiscal 2012 profits to the volatile currency and higher input costs such as coking coal prices. “We had to take Rs 899 crore hit on account of foreign exchange fluctuation and also high coking coal prices,” Mr Verma told reporters post results.
SAIL declared a final dividend of eight per cent (80 paise on par value of Rs 10 each). The company had declared an interim dividend of Rs 1.2 a share earlier. Tracking the results, SAIL shares hit a high of Rs 96.70 on Tuesday before retreating to close at Rs 93.15, a decline of 0.27 per cent.