Hindalco Industries Q3 profit drops 24%, income down at Rs 29,494 cr

Hindalco had posted a consolidated PAT of Rs 1,394 crore in the year-ago period; Its consolidated income dropped to Rs 29,494 crore, over Rs 33,483 crore a year ago.

Hindalco Industries on Wednesday posted a 23.8 per cent decline in consolidated profit after tax to Rs 1,062 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2019.

The company had posted a consolidated profit after tax of Rs 1,394 crore in the year-ago period, Hindalco Industries said in a filing to the BSE. Its consolidated income dropped to Rs 29,494 crore, over Rs 33,483 crore a year ago, the filing said.

The company said in a statement that in spite of subdued economic conditions, it delivered steady quarterly results on the back of strong performance by Novelis, lower input costs and stable operations of the Indian businesses.

"Profit after tax (PAT) stood at Rs 1,062 crore in Q3 FY20 (third quarter of 2019-20), down by 24 per cent as compared to the third quarter of FY19," it said.

Hindalco Industries Managing Director Satish Pai said that for the past few years, Hindalco has continuously focused on improving plant operations. "These efficiencies have helped us stay strong and steady amid weak markets. Despite global conditions, Novelis showed an increase in can and auto sheet shipments, spurred by growing consumer preference for sustainable packaging options and automotive closed-loop recycling systems."

He added that in the October-December 2019 period, 80 per cent of the company's consolidated Ebitda was non-LME (London Metal Exchange) linked.

"These trends bear out our focus on building our downstream, value-added portfolio, both for domestic and international markets. All our strategic expansion projects in India and Novelis are on track," Pai said.

In January 2020, Novelis issued $1.6 billion bonds.

The company said Novelis has received anti-trust approval from China for the Aleris acquisition.

"The European Commission is currently evaluating the suitability of the proposed buyer of Aleris' Duffel, Belgium plant. In the US, arbitration proceedings are in progress," it said.