Gulf Oil second-quarter net profit declines 4.59% to Rs 59.13 crore

Hinduja group-owned lubes maker Gulf Oil reported a 4.59 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 59.13 crore for the September quarter of this fiscal.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 61.98 crore in Q2FY20, according to a Gulf Oil release on Saturday.

The net sales declined 2 per cent to Rs 411.74 crore in the September quarter, as compared to Rs 421.28 crore in the July-September period of the previous fiscal.

The company has recorded all round growth in July-September quarter to deliver significantly improved numbers based on initiatives to drive up volume growth across all segments and continuing cost prudence measures, Gulf Oil said in the release.

"The demand conditions across many segments were showing strong revival and we are pleased to deliver a robust performance on both top line and bottom line front with highest quarterly profitability and highest EBITDA margins," said Ravi Chawla, Managing Director & CEO, Gulf Oil Lubricants India Ltd.

A robust supply chain and distribution strengths at Gulf Oil coupled with its strong demand sensing strategies resulted in record level volumes in key sub segments, the company said.

Industry also saw some demand conditions picking up month-on-month, with most markets and customer segments returning to near normalcy and some pent up demand, it added.

Rise in demand for products in the 2-wheeler and commercial vehicles category also contributed to the growth in the September quarter, the company said.

Moreover,the passenger car motor oil (PCMO) segment which has been the most affected due to bigger metro cities having seen the longest lockdown also picked up in terms of demand levels towards the end of the quarter, according to the release.

Other key segments for the company such as business-to-business (B2B) related and industrial businesses saw strong growth and record sales in this quarter, it said.

"The current demand conditions give a lot of optimism going forward, while we continue to exercise cost optimisation amid tightening input costs scenario and also look at market share growth opportunities ahead," Chawla said.