Bosch Ltd. registered net sales and income from operations of Rs. 10,415 crores for the 12 months from April 2014 to March 2015, representing an increase of 9.5 per cent compared to the preceding 12 months period. Profit before tax increased by 23.6 per cent at Rs. 1,859 crores. Profit after tax stands at Rs. 1,245 crores represents a 23.2 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
“All business sectors of Bosch Ltd. developed positively in the past 12 months,” said Dr. Steffen Berns, Managing Director of Bosch Ltd., at the company’s annual press conference.
Bosch’s Mobility Solutions business sector grew by 8.5 per cent in the 12-month period. The domestic business developed strongly and expanded by 11.5 per cent, outperforming the domestic automotive market which grew by 3.7 per cent in the same period. Within the Mobility Solutions business, the Gasoline Systems division registered a strong double-digit growth. The Diesel Systems and Automotive Aftermarket divisions also performed well.
The Bosch business sectors beyond Mobility Solutions posted double-digit growth driven by Security Systems, Packaging Technology as well as Energy and Building Solutions divisions.
In view of the company’s working results, the Board of Directors recommended a dividend of Rs. 85 per share for the 12-month period, the same as for the previous 15-month period.
For the quarter ended March 2016, Bosch Ltd. posted net sales and income from operations of Rs. 2,635 crores, an increase of 12.2 per cent over the corresponding quarter of 2015. In the current quarter, profit before tax (PBT) stood at Rs. 561 crores, a 26 per cent increase compared to the previous year. The increase in profit is mainly due to favorable product mix, increased operational efficiencies and productivity increase.
The mobility solutions sector grew by 12.6 per cent compared to five per cent growth of the automotive market this quarter. Within the segment of Mobility Solutions, Diesel Systems and Gasoline Systems divisions registered double-digit growth.
The business beyond Mobility Solutions also grew moderately, driven by strong performance of the Security Systems and Packaging Technology divisions.
“The domestic business of our company grew well above the production volumes of the automotive market again in this quarter. Exports declined due to weak demand from our export markets”, said Dr. Berns.
According to him, the market performance of the coming quarters will be determined by factors such as monsoon, fuel prices, interest rates and speed of execution of government reforms. “We expect moderate growth in the automotive industry and remain cautiously optimistic about the Indian market this year,” he said.
Dr. Berns further elaborated that the business environment remains dynamic and challenging with the announcement of the BS6 emission norms. “Through proactive investments in our infrastructure and in the competence development of our associates over the past years, we feel well prepared for the upcoming emission legislation. We are in close interactions with our customers and supporting them to define the BS6 strategies for all applications.”
During the last 12 months two new manufacturing plants of Bosch Ltd. started functioning. The Diesel Systems plant at Bidadi was inaugurated in August 2015. The company’s Power Tools plant in Chennai which is designed to support a wide range of products for the Indian market was inaugurated in November 2015. Overall the company made capital investments of around Rs. 480 crores in 2015-16 and plans a further investment of around Rs. 770 crores this year at its plants in Bidadi and Nashik for Common Rail pumps and injectors and in Bangalore for its R&D Tech center.