Steel giant Tata Steel swung into black by registering a consolidated net profit of Rs 1,017.78 crore in the quarter to September, helped by volume growth, higher sales and improved performance across verticals.
The company had incurred a consolidated net loss of Rs 49.38 crore in the July-September quarter a year ago.
Total income of the company during the quarter increased to Rs 32,717.35 crore against Rs 27,228.50 crore in the year- ago period.
During July-September 2017, total expenses were higher at Rs 30,566.68 crore compared to Rs 26,866.49 crore a year ago.
Tata Steel Managing Director T V Narendran said, "Our growth was broad-based with all verticals registering strong performance. During the quarter, we developed 27 new products across various customer segments."
Tata Steel witnessed a strong volume growth during the quarter as the smooth ramp-up of its Kalinganagar Steel plant coupled with strong marketing franchise enabled it to expand customer base and increase market share, he said.
Narendran further said this performance was against the backdrop of subdued steel demand during the quarter amid slow construction activity, weak rural demand and poor consumer sentiment.
"We remain positive on the outlook of India as encouraging government reforms are expected to facilitate domestic investment and growth in the coming years. The thrust on tax reforms and transparency will also facilitate the formalisation of economy and serve as tailwind to players like Tata Steel," the Tata Steel MD said.
The company's automotive segment grew 34 per cent (Y-o-Y) due to its focus on new grade development and new vehicle models, the statement said adding the branded products and retail solutions segment sales grew 14 per cent y-o-y with strong volume growth in emerging customer accounts.
Industrial products, projects and exports segment grew by 11 per cent (Y-o-Y), including a 60 per cent growth in our targeted value added and new segment sales.
Deliveries grew by 17 per cent Y-o-Y and 12 per cent quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q) to 3.08 million tonnes (MT) in the second quarter of FY2017-18 despite subdued apparent steel consumption growth in India (5 per cent Y-o-Y and 4 per cent Q-o-Q).
Giving details of its European operations, Tata Steel said the liquid steel production of 2.60 MT in the quarter was lower by 3 per cent (Y-o-Y) and 7 per cent (Q-o-Q).
Further, the deliveries were also higher by 15 per cent (Y-o-Y) and 8 per cent (Q-o-Q). Revenues were higher by 32 per cent (Y-o-Y).
Tata Steel recently has signed an MoU for a 50:50 joint venture with thyssenkrupp to create a leading European steel enterprise.
Tata Steel said its South East Asian business operations delivered strong operating performance during the quarter with higher deliveries and improved spreads.
Revenue for South East Asia operations increased by 22 per cent both (Y-o-Y) and (Q-o-Q) to Rs 2,424 crore. EBITDA improved to Rs 135 crores during the second quarter from Rs 22 crores in Q1 FY18 with higher deliveries and improved spreads.
During the quarter, the Pensions Regulator approved the Regulatory Apportionment Agreement in respect of British Steel Pension Scheme (BSPS) and payment of GBP 550 million has been completed.
The BSPS has been now separated from Tata Steel UK and number of affiliated companies, the company said adding the next step would be completion of necessary formalities to set up a new scheme with lower risk profile following member consent process led by trustee.
The company also completed the sale of 42-inch and 84- inch pipe mills in Hartlepool to Liberty House group and acquired full intellectual property rights in Hlsarna technology which has the potential to reduce energy use and carbon emissions by at least 20 per cent, as well as reducing the steel making costs through lower-priced raw materials.
Koushik Chatterjee, Group Executive Director, said, "Globally, there was a recovery in the commodity cycle with cuts in Chinese steel capacities and stronger demand resulting in improving utilisation levels of mills in China to more than 85 per cent. This coupled with recent uptick in the raw material prices has lifted the steel prices across regions."
Tata Steel Group revenues witnessed a sequential growth of 9 per cent primarily driven by increased volumes across the geographies, with India now contributing to 48 per cent of overall deliveries, he said.
"The liquidity position of the group remains very robust with Rs 19,800 crore in cash and cash equivalents. The capital expenditure for the quarter was around Rs 1,834 crore," he added.
Speaking on the performance, Hans Fischer, MD & CEO, Tata Steel Europe, said, "In a relatively stable market environment, we continued to strengthen our sales mix with deliveries of higher-value differentiated products increasing by almost 200 basis points in the last year to about 38 per cent of total sales."
This has been made possible by new products we have brought to market, he said.
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