JSW Steel back in black with Rs 466cr net; sales, exports up

JSW Steel today reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 466.49 crore for the quarter to December, driven by higher sales that was backed by exports which more than doubled during the period.
The steel maker had posted a loss of Rs 73.70 crore in the same period a year ago.
The Sajjan Jindal-led firm said its net sales rose to Rs 13,383.38 crore in the third quarter, from Rs 8,866.20 crore a year ago.
"The profit numbers are an indication of improved sales during the quarter. The sales growth was backed by exports, which was the highest ever reported in a quarter," JSW Steel Deputy Managing Director Vinod Nowal told reporters here.

The merger of JSW Ispat Steel with the company became effective from July 1 last year after the May approval of the Bombay High Court. Hence, the results are not fully comparable with corresponding periods of the previous year, he said.
The company achieved the highest-ever exports of 1 million ton (mt), accounting for 60 per cent of India's overall steel exports in the quarter under review, he said.

Nowal said while the overall crude steel production of the industry during the nine months of FY14 grew 4.8 per cent to 60.8 mt with apparent finished steel consumption up by 0.7 per cent to 54.7 mt, JSW Steel produced 3.19 mt crude steel and sold about 3.08 mt during the quarter.

"With exports surging on the back of improving demand in developed markets and rupee depreciation enhancing export competitiveness of domestic steel mills, the country turned into a net steel exporter in the third quarter."
Total expenditure rose to Rs 12,019.16 crore against Rs 8,119.53 crore a year ago.
On a standalone basis, the company reported a net profit of Rs 652.15 crore and net sales of Rs 11,731.44 crore, against Rs 136.73 crore and Rs 8,274.91 crore, respectively in the year-ago period.
Nowal said the company wants to accelerate capex plan to complete some of its projects ahead of deadline. "We have decided to accelerate our capex plan and try to complete some of our projects, most of which are backward integrated."

The company expects FY15 to be better than the current fiscal mainly on the back of steps the government has taken to clear major projects.
"The country continues to witness a challenging macro- economic environment. With likely commencement of investments in industrial and infrastructure projects post-elections, the domestic steel demand is expected to improve," he said.
Shares of the company closed up by 1.61 per cent at Rs 930 on the BSE.