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Business News/ Companies / Need To Know | Growing verticals: Nuvo net loss at Rs104 crore
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Need To Know | Growing verticals: Nuvo net loss at Rs104 crore

Need To Know | Growing verticals: Nuvo net loss at Rs104 crore

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Mumbai: Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd on Friday declared a net loss of Rs104.6 crore for the quarter ended 30 September, against net profit of Rs47.78 crore for the corresponding period last year.

Revenue grew 28.56% to Rs3,594.13 crore for the quarter, against Rs2,795.62 crore for the year-ago period.

The company, which has businesses ranging from textiles to telecom, is part of the Aditya Birla Group.

The decline in profit is largely owing to investments in business verticals such as life insurance, business process outsourcing, or BPO, and garments. The insurance business recorded losses of Rs200 crore for the quarter, largely due to a growing share of new business premiums and the expansion of its distribution network.

“It is in the growth phase and once the business reach a ratio of 40% new policies and remaining income from renewal of policies, we will be profitable. This will happen in the next two years," said Adesh Gupta, whole-time director and chief financial officer of the firm.

In the BPO business, the net loss increased to Rs25.7 crore from Rs20.3 crore due to foreign exchange rate fluctuations, while the garments business losses were Rs30.5 crore because of a drop in orders.

Nuvo’s stock closed 18.93% lower at Rs478.35 on a day when the benchmark Sensex lost 1,070.03 points, or 10.96%, to close at 8,701.07.

— P.R. Sanjai

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Bhel second quarter profit declines 10%

New Delhi/Mumbai: State-controlled Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (Bhel), whose equipment lights three of every five homes in India, said second quarter profit declined 10% from a year earlier, when a one-time tax refund boosted earnings.

Net income fell to Rs616 crore in the three months ended 30 September from Rs688 crore, New Delhi-based Bhel said in a statement to Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Friday. Revenue climbed 26% to Rs5,650 crore. The tax refund a year ago had almost tripled its revenue from sources other than its key business to Rs500 crore.

Bhel is contending with an increase in its wage bill and the cost of raw materials, including steel, which have damped margins. The company had Rs1.04 trillion worth of orders in hand at the end of September as the power shortage during peak hours in India widened to 17% in the last fiscal year from 14% a year earlier.

Bhel shares fell 6.72% to Rs1,091.75 at close in Mumbai.

— Bloomberg

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JSW Steel Q2 profit falls on costlier materials

Mumbai: The country’s third biggest producer of steel JSW Steel Ltd said second quarter profit fell 38% on record raw material costs. Net income dropped to Rs317 crore in the three months ended 30 September, from Rs511 crore a year earlier, the Mumbai-based company said. Sales rose 72% to Rs4,279 crore.

— Bloomberg

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NTPC’s Q2 profit rises 9.3% to Rs2,110 crore

Mumbai: India’s biggest power producer NTPC Ltd posted a 9.3% gain in profit in the quarter ended September.

Net income increased to Rs2,110 crore in the three months ended 30 September from Rs1,930 crore a year earlier, the company said in a statement on Friday. Sales climbed 20% to Rs9,660 crore.

— Bloomberg

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Rajya Sabha approves LLP Bill, 2008

New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha on Friday passed the Limited Liability Partnership Bill (LLP), 2008 with the support of all sides.

The legislation will define and regulate the way companies are structured and do business, and replace a 52-year-old law that currently performs these functions.

— Staff Writer

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Parliament session to reconvene on 10 Dec

New Delhi: The United Progressive Alliance, or UPA, government on Friday decided to extend the ongoing Parliament session, instead of adjourning it sine die.

As a result, the session, which began on 17 October as a continuation of the two-day session that was convened on 21 July to prove the UPA government’s majority, will continue its sitting from 10 December, two days after the declaration of results of five crucial assembly elections.

According to parliamentary affairs minister Vayalar Ravi, the decision to reconvene the 14th session on 10 December was taken because the opposition wanted a rescheduling of the session in view of the festive season and the assembly elections in six states.

— Liz Mathew

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Diamond jewellers seek production cut

Mumbai: The country’s diamond jewellery industry, the world’s biggest, is urging workers to take longer leave and calling on mining companies to cut supply as the deepening credit crisis weighs on demand for luxury goods.

The gem industry, which employs about 800,000 people in India, will allow holidays of as long as 45 days starting next week, instead of the usual 15 days, as it joins diamond miners including De Beers Group and ZAO Alrosa in taking steps to support prices.

“Diamonds and jewellery purchases will be the last item on people’s shopping list in these difficult times," said Vasant Mehta, chairman of the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council. “We have asked all the major miners including De Beers to consider a cut in supply to support the market."

Confidence among US buyers of luxury goods declined to at least a four-year low, researcher Unity Marketing said last week. Diamond prices may fall as much as 20% as global demand eases, James Allan, founder of Allan Hochreiter Ltd, a Johannesburg-based company that advises on mineral transactions, said this month.

— Bloomberg

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UTV Software drops by record on worries

Mumbai: UTV Software Communications Ltd fell by a record in Mumbai trading as investors who buy its shares from Friday won’t be eligible to sell their stakes to Walt Disney Co. by a 27 October deadline.

The settlement on new share purchases requires two days in India, making new buyers ineligible to tender their shares in the open offer from Disney. The US company has agreed to acquire 20% of UTV’s shares for Rs860.79 apiece until 27 October.

— Bloomberg

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Published: 24 Oct 2008, 11:02 PM IST
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