India's DLF Q2 profit rises on strong housing demand

BENGALURU, Oct 30 (Reuters) - Indias DLF (DLF.NS) on Monday reported a 30.6% jump in second-quarter profit, helped by higher home sales and new property launches.

Indias real estate demand has been strong ahead of the festive season which starts towards the end of the September-quarter, on growing consumer confidence despite high inflation and borrowing costs.

DLFs consolidated net profit came in at 6.23 billion rupees ($74.9 million) for the quarter ended Sept. 30, compared with 4.77 billion rupees a year ago.

The companys share of profit in associates and joint ventures such as DLF Cyber City Developers, DLF Midtown and DLF SBPL Developers rose 24.5%, and accounted for 43% of the total profit.

Revenue from operations rose 3.5%, while expenses rose marginally on higher costs of plots and constructed properties.

\“Expect a surge in both new launches and housing sales this festive season, despite domestic and global headwinds in the first nine months of 2023,\” said Anuj Puri, chairman of property consulting firm Anarock Group.

\“Our new product launches planned for the second half of the fiscal remain on track,\” DLF said in a statement, adding that it continued to see a sustained demand momentum.

Founded in 1946, DLF develops and sells residential properties and leases commercial and retail properties in 24 Indian cities.

It is the second among top Indian listed property developers to post results, with rivals Godrej Properties (GODR.NS), Sobha (SOBH.NS) expected to report next month.

Oberoi Realty (OEBO.NS) on Friday reported a 43.4% jump in September-quarter net profit, while its revenue surged 76.8% on the back of strong demand.

($1 = 83.2150 Indian rupees)