Reliance Q4 net profit up 41%

Wednesday, 23 April 2003, 19:30 IST
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Reliance Industries Ltd, India's second most valuable company, reported on Wednesday its fourth-quarter net profit rose 41 per cent, boosted by higher petrochemical prices and firmer refining margins.

MUMBAI: Reliance's petrochemical business has benefited from higher global prices and robust domestic demand as industrial growth remained strong in the world's 12th largest economy. The chemicals-to-telecoms group reported profit for its fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31 of Rs 11.01 billion ($232.5 million). Gross sales rose 32 per cent to Rs 176.79 billion. The net profit for the quarter was slightly lower than the Rs 11.37 billion forecast by a Reuters poll of 10 analysts. Analysts had estimated a net profit in the corresponding quarter of 2002 of Rs 8.34 billion on a net turnover of Rs 99.93 billion, accounting for the merger of Reliance Industries and Reliance Petroleum in September 2002. After the results, Reliance shares rose as much as 2.5 per cent to a high of Rs 284.45, but came off quickly to Rs 279.3. The benchmark Bombay Stock Exchange index was nearly flat. Reliance is India's largest private-sector company and its capacity for producing petrochemicals including paraxylene, polyester, purified terephthalic acid and polypropylene ranks among the top seven in the world. It is the world's third-largest producer of paraxylene, which goes into plastic bottles and tyres, and the seventh largest of polypropylene, used to make pipes, containers and packaging film. Its polyester-making capacity is the world's second largest.
Source: IANS