L&T profits rise 39% in Q3
By Mike Hayes30 January 2017
India’s largest construction firm, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), has announced a 38.85% rise in net profit in its latest quarterly report.
The reported figure for net profit for October to December 2016, is Rs972 crore (US$ 143 million), compares with 700.34 crore ($103 million) for the same period in the previous year.
L&T also reported total income from operations from October to December 2016, of Rs 26,287 crore (US$ 3.87 billion), up from Rs 25,928 (US$ 3.82 billion) during the same period in the previous year.
The firm said moves by the Indian government to demonetise the domestic economy were impacting on its business in a way that is currently hard to quantify.
Indian prime minister Narendra Modi said last year he was hoping to promote a switch from cash to digital transactions, thereby curbing the flow of ‘black money’.
In its statement, L&T said "Government`s initiatives to curb the parallel economy and make a transition to cashless economy have caused disruption whose impact on the business sentiment is yet to be conclusively assessed."
The company went on to say its focus would be on "selective pursuit of opportunities, working capital reduction, cost optimisation through supply chain efficiencies and productivity enhancement through digitisation initiatives.
"Aided by these initiatives, the company is hopeful of a satisfactory performance, given the current business environment."
