Grasim Reports April-June Loss As Costs Surge; Revenue Hits 11-Quarter High

Grasim Industries Ltd. posted a consolidated net loss of ₹1.18 billion for the April–June quarter, as rising input, employee and power costs weighed on earnings. Still, the Aditya Birla Group firm saw its highest revenue growth in nearly three years, with all key segments contributing to the top line.

Revenue from operations jumped 33.8% on year to ₹92.23 billion, marking the strongest growth in 11 quarters. Operating profit rose 26.3% on year to ₹5.28 billion, while the EBITDA margin held steady at 6%.

Segment Highlights:
Cellulosic Fibre: Revenue rose 7% on year to ₹40.4 billion; EBITDA fell 20.5% to ₹3.22 billion due to cost pressures. Sales volumes slipped 1% overall but rose 2% in domestic markets.

Chemicals: Revenue up 15.7% to ₹23.91 billion; EBITDA climbed 36% to ₹4.22 billion, led by stronger caustic soda and chlorine derivatives performance.

Paints: Revenue saw double-digit sequential growth; dealer presence expanded to 8,000 towns from 6,600 in the March quarter. Commercial operations at the sixth plant are due in the September quarter, pushing total capacity to 1.33 billion litres.

Capex: Paints segment investment stood at ₹95.55 billion so far. Overall standalone capital expenditure for the quarter was ₹4.8 billion.

Cost Surge:
Total expenses rose 34.9% on year to ₹95.23 billion.

Key cost drivers included:
Raw materials: up 21.9% to ₹42.3 billion
Employee costs: up 18.8% to ₹7 billion
Power and fuel: up 1.4% to ₹10 billion

Cement Segment (UltraTech):
Building materials revenue, under UltraTech, grew 16% on year to ₹401.18 billion. Cement volumes rose 9.7% on year to 36.83 million tonnes, though segment revenue was down 9.4% on quarter.

Grasim said profitability in the chemicals and cement segments supported its performance, but continued investments in scaling up the paints business kept margins under pressure.