By IANS,
Kolkata : The net profit of Kolkata-based ITC Ltd, which has interests in tobacco, paper, hospitality and agri-products, dropped 4.3 percent to Rs.7.49 billion in the first quarter of the current fiscal, compared to Rs.7.83 billion during the corresponding period last fiscal, the company said Monday.
“The unprecedented increase in the rates of excise duties on non-filter cigarettes, of the order of 140-390 percent, in the 2008 Union budget has made it unviable for legitimate manufacturers to make value propositions that will appeal to consumers in this segment,” a company release said.
ITC, however, posted a net turnover of Rs.39 billion in the first quarter this year, registering a growth of 18.4 percent.
This was largely driven by the non-cigarette businesses, which grew by 29 percent due to the continued scale up of the new FMCG businesses, higher agri business revenues and a healthy performance by the hotels and paperboards and packaging businesses, the release said.
ITC has varied ranges of businesses in its kitty like cigarettes, branded packaged foods, lifestyle retailing, personal care products, education and stationery products, hotels, paperboards, specialty paper and packaging and agri business.