The total Income (net of excise) has increased from Rs 23775.00 million (Rs 2377.5 crore) in Q3-03 to Rs 30164.70 million (Rs 3016.4 crore) for the quarter ended December 31, 2004.

The growth in net profit for the third quarter this fiscal has come despite the increase in price of steel and other raw materials during the period under review, Maruti said, adding cost reduction initiatives, including value analysis and value engineering helped to maintain growth.

The net profit of the company for the nine-month period (April-December 2004-05) jumped 54.3 per cent at Rs 594.18 crore (Rs 5.94 crore) compared to Rs 385.08 crore (Rs 3.85 billion) during the corresponding period previous fiscal.

The net profit in the first nine months of the current fiscal is more than the net profit for the entire 2003-04 fiscal, the company said.

Maruti's total income (net of excise) during Apr-Dec 2004-05 grew 24.5 per cent to Rs 8422.72 crore (Rs 84.22 billion) as against 6765.23 crore (Rs 67.65 billion) in the corresponding period of last fiscal.