Reliance Industries (RIL) reported a 46% rise in quarterly profit, helped by higher price realisations in its oil-to-chemicals (O2C), digital services (Jio) and retail businesses. Profit grew to £1.55 billion in the Q2FY22. Revenue totalled over £17 billion, up 50%, as markets revived after the second wave of the pandemic in Q1FY22.
Operating profit edged up 30% to £3.02 billion in the July through September months, aided by strong earnings in its three main businesses. “The results demonstrate the inherent strengths of our businesses and the robust recovery of the Indian and global economies. All our businesses reflect growth over pre-Covid levels,” said chairman and MD Mukesh Ambani.
Operating profit of O2C increased 44% to £1.27 billion due to higher volumes and price realisations. Operating profit of digital services climbed 15% to £956.1 million due to higher data usage by subscribers. However, average revenue per user (ARPU) - a key metric that influences income - was slightly down to Rs 144 in Q2FY22. ARPU is the total revenue of the telecom operator divided by the number of users on its network. Launched in 2016, Jio has 430 million customers (as of September end, down from previous quarter’s 441 million) and saw data and voice traffic growth of 51% and 18%, respectively, on its network. ARPU in the year ago period was Rs 145.
