GURGAON, India — Apollo Tyres Ltd. reported improved operating earnings for the quarter and nine months ended Dec. 31 as sales grew 14% in the quarter.
Operating income for the quarter nearly doubled to $142.7 million on 14.2% higher sales of $672.8 million. Net income was $60 million.
Domestic business accounted for much of the gain, Apollo said, while in Europe the company continued to make inroads on the premium segment despite an overall sluggish demand environment.
The company's sales in "other" countries — a category that includes North America — increased 36% in the quarter but for the nine months were down 21%.
For the first nine months of fiscal 2021, Apollo reported 37.6% higher operating income of $278 million on slightly lower revenue of $1.63 billion. Net income was $8.5 million.
Commenting on the company's performance, Apollo Chairman Onkar Kanwar, said, "Our performance across geographies has been robust in the past quarter, and we continue to be extremely positive on the demand environment.
"Given our planned investments in capacity, R&D, brand and distribution, along with our cost optimization program, we are extremely well placed to leverage demand recovery across segments and geographies."
Separately, Apollo has launched domestically a line of reduced rolling-resistance tires, dubbed Amazer XP, that have been approved for OE fitment on a range of compact cars from local companies Tata, Renault, Hyundai, etc.
The company is targeting the line at the emerging electric-vehicle market as well.
