Tata Steel clocks Rs. 921 crore Q1 profit against Rs. 3,183 cr Q1 loss last fiscal

The company had posted consolidated net loss of Rs 3,183 crore in the year-ago period, Tata Steel said in a filing to BSE.

"Our sales were up by 28 per cent on a y-o-y basis as the smooth ramp up of our Kalinganagar facility helped us increase our volumes and increase our market share," T V Narendran, Managing Director, Tata Steel India and South East Asia said in a statement.

The consolidated revenue from operations during April- June quarter was at Rs 30,973 crore, registering an increase of 19 per cent.

"We saw strong growth in our branded products, retail and solutions segment which increased 19 per cent y-o-y and now contributes around 48 per cent of overall revenues," Narendran said.

However, consolidated total expenses increased to Rs 28,844 crore, over Rs 25,003.7 crore in the year-ago period.

"From a sequential perspective, there was inventory destocking across the channel in the run-up to the GST implementation which led to a drop in volumes. While realisations were under pressure during the quarter, we are seeing a recovery in prices on the back of stronger domestic demand and better international prices," Narendran said.

The company said gross debt at Rs 87,812 crore as on June 30, 2017 went up by nearly Rs 4,798 crore from the previous quarter on account of forex impact, inventory buildup in India as a result of GST implementation and seasonal trends in Europe.

However, net debt was significantly lower at Rs 71,703 crore.

Elaborating on its Indian operations, the company said that there were "deliveries of 2.75 million tonnes in Q1FY18.

An increase of 28 per cent over the corresponding quarter of the last year (was) largely due to the ramp up of Kalinganagar facility. Sequential decline of 14 per cent due to seasonal factors, GST and planned shutdowns."

Liquid steel production in the first quarter of 2.79 million tonnes was seven per cent higher on a sequential basis and y-o-y basis.