Date:10/06/2005 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/06/10/stories/2005061002750200.htm

Back Apollo Tyres targets 15 pc topline growth

K. R. Srivats

New Delhi , June 9

THE Rs 2,650-crore Apollo Tyres Ltd (ATL) hopes to repeat its topline performance of 2004-05 this fiscal. The company plans to grow its topline by around 15 per cent in 2005-06, even as it expects the profit margins to be "flat." "We don't see any relief coming our way on the raw material prices front in the current fiscal. Our profit margins would be flat, although there was some erosion in margins during fiscal 2004-05. But we hope to have a topline growth of 15 per cent on the expanded topline base of 2004-05," Mr Sunam Sarkar, a member on the ATL board, told Business Line.

ATL's gross sales grew 14.8 per cent to Rs 2,657 crore in 2004-05. The profit margins of the tyre industry have been under pressure in recent years on account of the strengthening of raw material prices, especially domestic natural rubber prices and global crude oil prices. "In spite of a challenging environment on the raw material front, we have almost maintained our bottomline performance in 2004-05 as against the previous year," Mr Sarkar said.

ATL's net profits, as a percentage of gross sales, dipped to 2.55 per cent in fiscal 2004-05 against 3.04 per cent in 2003-04. The company on Tuesday reported a net profit of Rs 67.63 crore for the year ended March 31, 2005 against a net profit of Rs 70.42 crore last year.