(Adds details of jewellery sales)
BENGALURU, May 3 (Reuters) - Indian jewellery and watch maker Titan Co
Ltd reported an almost 50% jump in fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday
as demand for its watches and wearables rose alongside jewellery.
The Tata Group company's profit rose to 7.34 billion rupees ($90
million) in the three months ended March 31, from 4.91 billion rupees a year
earlier.
The sale of products jumped about 27% to 85.53 billion rupees after
jewellery brand Tanishq, which accounts for more than three-fourths of the
revenue, reported an almost 33% increase. The brand saw a 15% increase in the
number of new and repeat buyers, the company said in an investor presentation.
Meanwhile, growth in the wedding segment recovered, inching marginally
ahead of overall retail sales growth, it added.
Analysts expect gold prices to keep close to all-time highs in the
coming months as central banks stop raising interest rates and investors buy
bullion as a hedge against economic uncertainty, a
Reuters poll
showed.
Besides gold, the company makes watches and wearables under the Fastrack and
Helios brands, a segment that reported a 40% increase in revenue.
(Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by Dhanya Ann
Thoppil)
