Ceat reports double-digit growth in sales, earnings

Mumbai, India – Ceat Ltd has reported double-digit growth in second quarter sales and earnings (EBIDTA), driven by a ‘healthy’ increase in volumes.

For the quarter ended 30 Sept, the Indian tire maker posted INR37.7 billion (€370 million), up 14.2% year-on-year.

Earnings for the period increased 39% year-on-year to INR5.1 billion, Ceat reported 17 Oct.

Ceat linked the growth in sales to “healthy year-on-year volume growth, led by OEM and international business segments.”

OEM volume growth was “robust” across all key segments with 'festive-season' inventory demand providing a “strong tailwind”.

The international business, Ceat noted, is “recovering well and witnessing strong demand from key clusters.”

Commenting on the results, managing director and CEO Arnab Banerjee said he expected domestic demand to continue to grow due to a reduction in goods & services tax rates on tires and vehicles.

Furthermore, Banerjee said, the full integration of the Camso brand marks “a significant milestone” in the company’s global premiumisation strategy.

“Looking ahead, with a positive growth momentum, we look forward to double-digit growth in the second half of the year,” he added.

“Overall, second quarter has been a strong quarter for us, marked by topline growth and expansion of margins,” said CFO Kumar Subbiah.

The company’s balance sheet, Subbiah said, “continues to be healthy even after the increase in debt level and well-positioned to provide necessary capital to support future growth.”