Maruti profit misses Street

Higher costs and one-time expenses dent profit despite higher demand

- NITIN KUMAR

MARUTI SUZUKI INDIA on Wednesday reported a modest year-on-year rise in profit for the October-December quarter, but fell short of market expectations as higher costs and onetime expenses eroded the benefit of strong festival-led demand and GST cut-driven volume growth.

The country’s largest carmaker posted a standalone net profit of ₹3,794 crore, up 3.7% from ₹3,659 crore a year earlier. The figure, however, missed Bloomberg’s consensus estimate of ₹4,416 crore. The profit included a onetime charge of ₹594 crore linked to the implementation of new labour codes.