Tata Steel scrip up despite Rs603-cr net loss in Q3
11 Feb 2012
Tata Steel, India's the biggest producer of the metal, expects to improve its performance in the current quarter on the back of higher prices of steel and softening raw material costs, as well as increased demand.
The company has increased prices of steel products by Rs1,000 per tonne in the domestic market, Kaushik Chatterjee, chief financial officer at Tata Steel said in a post-earnings conference call on Friday. This is the second time in 2012 that the company has hiked prices.
The company is seeking shareholders' approval to increase its borrowings by a quarter to Rs50,000 crore.
The Indian operations of Tata Steel have performed well though the bottom line of European operations took a hit on account of interest cost, foreign exchange losses and high coal prices.
The company had to write off Rs741 crore this quarter due to price revaluation of inventories of raw material and finished goods in its European operations.
The company reported a consolidated net loss of Rs602.67 crore in the third quarter of the financial year (October-December) for the first time in the last two years. The world's seventh largest steelmaker reported 15 per cent year-on-year increase in net sales to Rs32,964.15 crore.