Siemens net doubles on exceptional item gains

Income from exceptional items and new orders helped engineering major Siemens post a net profit of Rs 337 crore for the third quarter ended June 30, a 99 per cent growth as compared to Rs169 crore for the corresponding period in the previous year.

Sales for the quarter rose by 6 per cent to Rs 1,910 crore as compared to Rs 1,810 crore for the corresponding previous period, thanks to a 13 per cent growth in new orders worth Rs 2,340 crore during the quarter.

During the quarter, Siemens received an exceptional income of Rs 211 crore from sale of its investments in Siemens Information Systems (SISL) and Siemens Information Processing Services (SIPS). Therefore, the profit figures for the quarter and nine months are not comparable, said a press release.

"Our strong focus on operational excellence combined with the domain expertise of our people supported our results. The energy sector’s growth continued with a strong contribution by the transmission division. Industry sector with a combination of short term and long term business cycles continued to perform in line with the market, especially the mobility division which performed quite well," said Armin Bruck, managing director, Siemens.

As of June 30, the company has an order backlog of  Rs 10,145 crore. The overall healthcare business of the company also has shown a stable growth, thanks to a shift in the spending pattern from the private to the public sector resulting in an increase in the commission business.

However, profit from operations for the quarter stood at Rs 237 crore, registering a decline of 5 per cent over the corresponding period in the last year.
 
With the growth potential in the infrastructure sector combined with the product portfolio, focus on operational excellence and local manufacturing strength will help Siemens to leverage the business opportunities in the market,  Bruck said.

Siemens is the flagship listed company of the German engineering major Siemens in India, which has about 20 companies in India focusing on industry, energy and healthcare solutions with a combined business volume of Rs 11,800 crore.