India's Exide Industries' quarterly profit rises as tax cuts fuel battery demand

Exide Industries

30/01/2026 08:47

Jan 30 (Reuters) - Indian battery maker Exide Industries EXID.NS reported a 5% rise in third-quarter profit on Friday, as the country's recent tax cuts fanned an increase in sales to automakers, but growth was partly offset by weaker exports.

Shares of the company were up about 0.7%, little changed from before the results were announced.

WHY IT MATTERS

The results reflect a broader recent trend of Indian auto and component makers seeing a revival in demand after the country implemented tax cuts on a wide range of goods in late September that made vehicles and their parts cheaper.

Lower tax rates boosted sales of vehicles by 18% in the third quarter, industry data showed.

     The tax rate on batteries, which was earlier 28%, was reduced to 18%.

KEY CONTEXT

Exide, like most parts makers, generates most of its revenues from retail customers. Vehicle battery sales to customers replacing older units was a key growth driver, analysts said.

The company, which also sells uninterrupted power supply units, gets three-fourths of its revenue from retail, or non-institutional customers. Direct sales to automakers and industrial clients form the remaining one-fourth of revenue.

Revenue from sales to automakers jumped 25% during the quarter, while sales of two- and four-wheeler batteries to retail customers hit a record high, Exide said.

Exports, however, remained weak due "tariff linked challenges", capping profit and revenue growth.

BY THE NUMBERS

The company reported a standalone profit after tax of 2.58 billion Indian rupees ($28.1 million) for the October-December period, up from 2.45 billion rupees a year before.

Quarterly revenue grew about 5% to 40.3 billion rupees.

Expenses for the period rose 4.5%, led higher by a nearly 14% jump in raw material costs.

($1 = 91.9000 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)

 ((Nandan.Mandayam@thomsonreuters.com; Mobile: +91 9591011727;))