MUMBAI: IVP's sales for the year ended March 1999 more than doubled to Rs 693 crore compared to Rs 291 crore last year, showing an improvement of 138 per cent. The gross profit amounted to Rs 21.25 crore (Rs 13.81 crore) an improvement of 54 per cent. The net profit for the year at Rs 12.83 crore (Rs 8.35 crore) is higher by 54 per cent. The directors have hiked the dividend to 25 per cent from 20 per cent last year.

Bharti-Duraline

MUMBAI: Bharti-Duraline, a joint venture between Duraline of USA and Bharti Telecom, India's leading telecom conglomerate, will help build a high-capacity information highway for Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation along the Mumbai-Pune Expressway. Comprising optic fibre cables laid within permenantly solid lubricated HDPE telcom ducts, the Information Highway will offer cable operators, telecom companies, Internet service providers readily available transmission network to quickly roll out their services.

NilkamalPlastics

MUMBAI: Nilkamal Plastics has fared exceedingly well for the year ended March 1999 with gross sales registering a growth of 48 per cent and net profit spurting by 73 per cent. The directors have recommended a final dividend of 20 per cent, which along with the interim of 20 per cent paid earlier, takes the total to 40 per cent against 24 per cent last year.The company has posted gross sales of Rs 206.26 crore compared with Rs 139.43 crore. Its other income stands at Rs 22.17 crore (Rs 19.27 crore).The gross profit has jumped by 64 per cent to Rs 31.87 crore (Rs 19.48 crore). The net profit has gone up to Rs 22.19 crore from Rs 12.79 crore.

Essar Shipping

MUMBAI: Essar Shipping has registered a net profit of Rs 48.03 crore in 1998-99, a 9 per cent increase over the previous year. According to a communique, this comes despite the decline of 3 per cent in total income, due to depressed market conditions. Total income stood at Rs 434.88 crore, while operating profit was Rs 249.16 crore.