Tata Steel Q4 net rises 44 per cent

Mumbai: Tata Steel reported a 44.47 per cent rise in net profit for the quarter ended March 2005. The net profit rose to Rs908.58 crore from Rs628.88 crore in the corresponding previous period. Net sales / income from operations was up 20.76 per cent at Rs3,864.65 crore (Rs3,200.27 crore).

For 2004-2005, the company''s net profit soared by 98.95 per cent to Rs3,474.16 crore (Rs1,746.22 crore) on a 35.47 per cent gain in net sales / income from operations to Rs14,498.95 crore (Rs10,702.39 crore).

The company''s board has recommended a dividend of 130 per cent.

B Muthuraman, managing director, told press persons that he expected HR prices to average $600 a tonne for the next 18 months, given the time needed for raw material supply corrections and the likely longer time needed for scrap steel supply to normalise.

The global steel industry is operating at 95 per cent capacity utilisation and China would drive steel consumption for some time with India also waiting to kick in. On World Steel Dynamics'' opinion that prices may soften, he said: "Spot prices could, but their report also says prices may later strengthen."

Muthuraman said that the company''s results were good despite that price cut, the 110-day shutdown of the ''G'' blast furnace and high raw material prices.

Hot metal production stood at 4.35 million tonnes (4.47 metric tonne); crude steel 4.10 mt (4.22 metric tonne), and saleable steel 4.11 metric tonne (4.09 metric tonne). Branded steel at Rs3,362 crore (Rs2,363 crore) accounted for 29 per cent (25 per cent) of domestic sales.

For 2005-2006, it plans to produce 5.2 metric tonne of hot metal and 5 metric tonne of crude steel, with saleable steel at 4.85 metric tonne.