India’s Tata Motors the country’s top commercial vehicles maker, reported a quarterly loss on Thursday, as it took a one-time impairment charge related to an investment in one of its units.
The maker of the Ace mini-truck reported a loss of 1.02 billion rupees ($11.6 million) for the quarter ended September 30, compared with a profit of 6.43 billion rupees a year ago.
The company, which split from the passenger vehicles business in October, made its trading debut on India’s stock exchanges on Wednesday, listing at a 28.5% premium. The shares were down nearly 3% on Thursday.
The two units now operate independently under the Tata Motors group.
Tata Motors incurred a one-time charge worth 2.67 billion rupees during the quarter related to the impairment of its investment in one of its units.
Excluding the charge, the truckmaker’s profit jumped about 57% to 17.57 billion rupees on strong festive season demand for small cargo trucks.
Automakers enjoy strong demand ahead of the festive season as fleet operators stock up to meet peak consumption and logistics needs during India’s busiest shopping period.
The government’s infrastructure spending and tax rate cuts further boosted sales.
The company’s sales jumped 12% year-on-year to 94,681 units, driven by a 9% rise in domestic sales and a 75% surge in exports.
Overall revenue rose 9.3% to 168.04 billion rupees during the quarter.