(Reuters) -India’s Bajaj Auto posted a 21% rise in second-quarter adjusted profit on Wednesday on account of higher domestic motorcycles sales.
The ‘Pulsar’ motorcycle maker reported a standalone adjusted profit of 22.16 billion rupees ($263.8 million) in the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with 18.36 billion rupees a year earlier.
However, including a deferred tax liability of 2.11 billion rupees, Bajaj’s profit grew only 9% to 20.05 billion rupees.
The tax liability was to account for the government retroactively removing the long-term tax benefits for investments before April 2023.
Two-wheeler manufacturers have benefited from a healthy monsoon that put more money in rural India’s regions, a key demographic for entry-level motorcycles like Bajaj’s ‘Platina 110’.
Meanwhile, urban customers bought premium motorcycles, boosting motorcycle makers’ margins. For Bajaj, this segment includes its 200cc-plus motorcycles such as the popular ‘Pulsar’ models.
Bajaj Auto also said it will invest $10 million in its Brazil unit to help expand its business in the South American country, which also houses its first manufacturing plant outside India.
The Pune-headquartered company’s domestic two-wheeler sales – which make up about 64% of its total for two-wheelers – jumped 26% to 6,36,801 units, according to company data.
This includes sales of its ‘Chetak’ brand of electric scooters that have expanded at an aggressive pace.
Its remaining two-wheeler sales comprise of exports, which grew 5.4%, following a gradual recovery in its African and South Asian markets.
That helped its total revenue grow 21.8% to 131.27 billion rupees. ($1 = 83.9940 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Varun Hebbalalu and Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Savio D’Souza)
