Hitachi Q1 net Rs 3.79 cr

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-family:="" arial="">AHMEDABAD: Ahmedabad-based airconditioner player Hitachi Home & Life Solutions has announced a profit after tax of Rs 3.79 crore for the first quarter of fiscal 2004-05 ended June 30, 2004, as against a loss of Rs 1.75 crore in the corresponding period of last year.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="">This was on a 6 per cent increase in sales to Rs 110 crore in the quarter as compared to Rs 104.59 crore in the same period of last year.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="">According to the company, the perfomance improvement in the quarter was due to cost-cutting initiatives like reducing staff cost by 23 per cent from Rs 4.87 crore crore to Rs 3.77 crore thereby bringing down the staff cost to sales ratio to 3.4 per cent.</span><br /><br /><span style="" font-family:="" arial="">The interest component for the quarter too has been brought down to Rs 43.90 lakh for the quarter, which is barely 0.4 per cent of sales, from Rs 1.85 crore during the corresponding period of last year.</span></div> </div>