India's Tata Motors posts second-quarter profit on strong commercial vehicle demand (updated)

Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles

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Oct 23 (Reuters) - India's Tata Motors TATM.NS on Friday posted a quarterly profit compared to a loss a year earlier, helped by healthy demand for commercial vehicles.
The automaker reported a profit of 21.38 billion rupees ($225.19 million) for the July to September quarter, compared with a loss of 10.21 billion rupees a year earlier. The profit included a one-time gain of 2.18 billion rupees. 

        Commercial vehicle demand remained resilient in the quarter, led by steady freight movement, government-led infrastructure activity and healthy fleet utilisation, supporting growth in the medium and heavy truck segment, a key revenue generator for Tata Motors. 
Total revenue from operations rose 41.9% to 239.30 billion rupees, helped by a 42% increase in wholesale sales, with growth in domestic and export volumes. 
The commercial vehicle maker rolled out three price hikes this year, with the latest in September when it raised prices by up to 1%.
However, rising raw material prices more than offset the benefits of the recent price hikes and continued to weigh on the company's margins. Core margin for the second quarter was at 11.7%, down 90 basis points from a year earlier.
"With H1FY27 volumes up 35%, we remain well positioned for a robust FY27, even as growth rates are expected to moderate in the second half against a higher base," Girish Wagh, managing director and CEO of Tata Motors, said in a statement. 
Tata Motors is part of India's Tata Group, which is caught in a power struggle over control of the holding company and whether it should go public. 
  
($1 = 94.9400 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Saikeerthi in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)
 ((Saikeerthi@thomsonreuters.com;))