India's JK Tyre Q3 profit rises as commodity prices ease

JK Tyre & Industries

03/02/2023 12:35

BENGALURU, Feb 3 (Reuters) - India's JK Tyre &
Industries  JKIN.NS  on Friday reported a more than 15% jump in
third-quarter profit led by easing raw material prices and a
strong demand for vehicles.
    Consolidated net profit rose to 655.9 million Indian rupees 
($8.01 million) for the quarter ended Dec. 31. 
    "Our profit margins improved, supported by softening in raw
material prices, continued focus on cost control and timely
price revisions." Chairman and Managing Director Raghupati
Singhania said in a statement.
    Tyre companies have been relying on price hikes to offset
the surging input costs that hit margins.
    Total expenses  rose nearly 17% to 34.96 bln rupees.
    "We believe the tyre industry is set to witness healthy
demand in the domestic market emanating from improved vehicle
utilization and thrust on infrastructural development," CMD
Singhania said. 
    Strong demand for passenger cars and commercial vehicles has
boosted tyre sales in the country. Sales of cars, bikes, and
trucks jumped 23% last quarter due to holiday demand and better
availability of chips, per the Society of Indian Automobile
Manufacturers.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N3490YY
    JK Tyre, which counts Maruti Suzuki India Ltd  MRTI.NS  and
Tata Motors Ltd  TAMO.NS  as its customers, reported an 18% jump
in revenue from operations to 36.13 billion rupees.
    
   Rivals CEAT Ltd  CEAT.NS  and Apollo Tyres Ltd  APLO.NS   had
reported strong results thus far, led by the demand from
original equipment makers and price increases.
    Ahead of the earnings, JK Tyre shares closed up 1.7%. The
shares soared 32% last year.
    ($1 = 81.8590 Indian rupees)
 (Reporting by Yagnoseni Das in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann
Thoppil)
 ((Yagnoseni.Das@thomsonreuters.com; +91 6001289066;))