Indian paintmaker Kansai Nerolac reported a rise in second-quarter profit on Wednesday as a drop in raw material costs more than made up for slowing revenue growth.
The company, owned by Japan's Kansai Paint Co, said its consolidated net profit rose 56% to Rs 177 crore ($21.26 million) for the three months ended Sept. 30.
Revenue from operations rose 1.3% to 19.57 billion rupees, while the cost of raw materials fell more than 8%.
Overall, the sector has been on the road to recovery, led largely by easing crude prices - a key raw material for paintmakers, comprising about 30% of their input costs.
Kansai Nerolac's profit rose in the last two quarters on robust demand for its decorative paints after a tough October-December quarter last year, when an extended monsoon hurt quarterly profit.
Peer Asian Paints also reported easing margins and a 54% rise in net profit in the September quarter, even though it missed estimates.