WCA January 2013

India

bigstockphoto.com – photographers – Angelika Smile and Pokaz

State-owned SAIL is off course!

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) missed expectations despite a 12 per cent rise in quarterly profit, as lower sales and higher input costs capped gains. SAIL, the largest steel producer in India, has seen sales impacted as demand cools in India’s auto, consumer goods and construction sectors, which count among its major customers. The economy’s budgeted growth rate for 2012/13 was expected to be 7.6 per cent, but it only achieved 5.5 per cent in the June quarter, the slowest in three years. which manufactures a range of products such as cold rolled coils and sheets, pipes, wheels and axles, reported a decline in net sales to 106.63 billion Indian rupees from 108.37 billion a year earlier. Increased fuel costs and other expenses plus higher wage expenses, from a new salary agreement applicable since 1 st The state-owned steelmaker,

January, also contributed to lower operating margins. SAIL said net profit rose to 5.43 billion rupees in the three months to end-September from 4.85 billion rupees a year earlier. A Reuters poll of brokerages had estimated on average net profit of 7.3 billion rupees for the quarter. Most analysts had expected the company to report higher sales volumes for the quarter and benefit from a decline in coking coal prices globally. SAIL imports 75 per cent of its coking coal requirement. SAIL reported sales volume of 2.26 million tonnes compared with 2.81 million tonnes a year ago. Earlier, it had reported a 4 per cent increase in saleable steel output at 3.18 million tonnes. SAIL is the largest steel producer in India, and under an ongoing expansion programme the company expects to increase capacity to 18 million tonnes by the end of March.

35

www.read-wca.com

Wire & Cable ASIA – January/February 2013