Birla Corp sees 450% rise in net profit

India's Birla Corp has seen a 450 per cent increase in net profit to INR880m (US$12.4m) in the 2QFY19-20, compared with INR160m in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal. Revenue advanced 10.9 per cent YoY to INR16.47bn, while EBITDA surged 61 per cent to INR3.32bn. The EBITDA margin climbed to 20.1 per cent from 13.9 per cent.

The company has attributed the positive results to higher realisation from premium and blended cement sales, and cost rationalisation. Capacity utilisation was at 83 per cent during the September quarter, with cement sales reaching 2.6Mt (83 per cent of total sales).