Reliance Retail Q2 profit falls 24% as festive season shifts to next quarter

Reliance Retail, the retail arm of Reliance Industries, reported a 24.3% year-on-year fall in net profit to Rs 2,611 crore for the September quarter, according to its exchange filing. (Some reports put profit after tax at Rs 2,619 crore, a 24.5% decline.)

Revenue from operations of Reliance Retail Ventures rose 5.8% to Rs 80,220 crore, while gross revenue grew 6.4% to Rs 91,716 crore. Profit was also down 6.9% from Rs 2,805 crore in the June quarter.

The company said the biggest reason was timing: major festivals such as Navratri and Diwali fell in the October–December quarter this year. It also cited consumer inflation at a two-year high of 5.5%, a weaker rupee that raised the cost of imported electronics and fashion, and a weak monsoon that hurt rural demand.

EBITDA before a one-time charge fell 8.6% to Rs 6,228 crore, and the margin narrowed by 120 basis points to 7.8%. The quarter included a Rs 108 crore impairment on 7-Eleven, whose stores in India were all shut by the end of September.

Reliance Retail ended the quarter with 19,947 stores. The company said it will not raise prices to protect margins.

Key numbers

• Net profit: Rs 2,611 crore (−24.3% YoY)
• Revenue from operations: Rs 80,220 crore (+5.8% YoY)
• EBITDA before one-time charge: Rs 6,228 crore (−8.6%)
• Store count: 19,947