ITC net profit surges 21.8 pc, as tobacco biz grows

Tobacco-to-toiletry conglomerate ITC registered a sharp rise in its first-quarter profit of 21.8 per cent as its tobacco business grew despite a recent price hike.

Tobacco-to-toiletry conglomerate ITC registered a sharp rise in its first-quarter profit of 21.8 per cent as its tobacco business grew despite a recent price hike.

HT Image

The first-quarter profit rose 21.8 per cent at Rs 1,070 crore during the quarter as against Rs 878.7 crore for the same period last year. Other businesses including agriculture and the hotel too have done well.

ITC, which gets more than 80 per cent of its profit from selling tobacco, saw its revenue from cigarette sales soar 12 per cent even as the company raised prices after the government increased taxes by as much as 17 per cent in this year’s Budget.

The operating profits from the non-cigarette businesses grew 38 per cent during the quarter at Rs 265 crore in June 2010 from Rs 192 crore in June 2009.

“Despite the excise tax hike, the company has not seen any significant impact on volumes,” said Anand Shah, analyst at Angel Broking.