Maruti Suzuki net profit slides by 35.5 per cent, misses estimate

Mumbai: Maruti Suzuki Ltd India's biggest carmaker, reported a 35.5 percent fall in fourth-quarter profit, missing estimates, as potential car buyers postponed their purchases and waited for a slowing economy to pick up.

Maruti, controlled by Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp stated that the profit for the January -March quarter was 8 billion rupees ($131 million) compared to 12.4 billion rupees in same year-ago period.

The year-ago quarterly profit is not strictly comparable as it included the full-year impact of Maruti's merger with its powertrain unit. A substantial decline in the yen had also made imports of auto parts cheaper.

The automaker reported a net profit of 6.81 billion rupees in the previous quarter.