Processing .....please wait.. 
The article has been forwarded.... 
Gujarat Ambuja Q1 net profit jumps six-fold
By siliconindia staff writer
|
Wednesday, 20 October 2004, 19:30 IST
MUMBAI: Gujarat Ambuja Cements Ltd, India's third-biggest cement maker by capacity, said on Wednesday that quarterly profit surged as it benefitted from a boom in export prices.
Gujarat Ambuja, also the nation's top cement exporter, said standalone net profit in the first fiscal quarter ended September rose more than six-fold to Rs 904.6 million ($19.8 million).
Net sales climbed 58 per cent to Rs 5.99 billion.
A Reuters poll had forecast a 427 per cent jump in the past quarter's net profit to a median Rs 955 million.
Gujarat Ambuja, which exports about 15 per cent of its output, benefitted from higher cement prices in west Asia, as rising crude oil prices fuelled a construction boom.
On average, global cement prices in the past quarter were $40 per tonne, up nearly 50 per cent from a year ago period.
Gujarat Ambuja sold 3.3 million tonne of cement during July-September, up 16.4 per cent from the year ago period.
Shares in Gujarat Ambuja have risen nearly 17 per cent this year, compared with a 1.7 per cent drop in the key Bombay share index in the same period.