Murugappa eyes 20% rise in turnover this fiscal

Chennai,June7:Ridinghigh on an encouraging sign on the sugar,commercialvehicleand financial services sectors, the diversified Murugappa group is aiming for a 20% growth in its total business for the current fiscal.

The group posted a 9% growth in total sales to R29,470 crore in FY16 as against R26,926 crore.

The 20% growth in FY17 will be possible as the group expects production capacity to touch 90% across companies as against 70% in the last fiscal, said A Vellayan, executive chairman, Murugappa group.

Thegroup,whichsawnegativegrowthattheEBITDAlevel in its sugar and fertiliser businesses, is confident of reporting higher profits in the current fiscal owing to quick measures initiated by the union government, Vellayan added.

Addressing the annual press conference here on Tuesday, Vellayan said, “We are confident of posting 20% growthinourtotalbusinesses owing to lot of initiatives taken by the Union government in the above sectors.

A R15 kg hike in sugar, excise withdrawal on molasses, encouraging sugar exports, early release of fertiliser subsidy by the government and rising demand for crop and weather insurances across the country will help us.”

“We are confident that group companies such as Coromandel Fertilisers (whichreported8%degrowth at Ebitda level) and EID Parry (which reported 49% degrowth at EBITDA level), will reverse back and hope to post better margins in the current fiscal with increased production capacity,” he said.

Similarly, a flow of orders from Railways and defence sectors would also help our group company Shanti Gears to achieve better results in the current fiscal.

With the sharp pick up in commercialvehiclefinancing and an encouraging demand on the housing finance front coupledwithamarkedofftake in crop and weather insuranceswouldhelpourfinancial services companies such as Cholamandalam Investment andFinancialServicesaswell Chola MS General Insurance Co, Vellayan said in response to a query.

According to Vellayan, based on representation from the industry and with the active intervention of the Union government, the fortunes of the sugar industry changed.