WIPRO DISAPPOINTS WITH BELOWPAR EARNINGS IN MARCH QUARTER

BENGALURU: Wipro Ltd on Wednesday reported fiscal-fourth quarter revenue growth that was in line with analysts estimates but the company said it does not expect any revenue growth in the current quarter, dashing hopes that India’s third largest information technology outsourcing company will turn the corner soon.

Wipro managed a 2.9% growth in constant-currency terms in 2017-18, implying that for the second straight year, India’s three largest services firms, including Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) and Infosys Ltd, grew slower than industry body Nasscom’s estimates.

TCS reported a 6.7% growth, while Infosys managed a 5.8% growth in constant-currency terms, which was lower than Nasscom’s 7.8% growth estimate for the country’s $167 billion information technology outsourcing industry in 2017-18.

Significantly, Bengalurubased Wipro became the first large IT outsourcing company to end the year with fewer employees than it started with, its headcount falling by 1,654 employees in 2017-18.

The company added 8,650 employees in 2016-17, underlining the challenges faced by the sector, which employed 3.7 million people.

Wipro’s dollar revenue improved 2.4% sequentially to $2.06 billion in the three months to March (1.1% rise in constant currency terms).

Net profit declined 8.6% to $277 million from $303 million in the preceding quarter, on account of the company making a one-time provision for two clients, including British contractor Carillion Plc and telecom operator Aircel, going bankrupt.