Minus telcos, India Inc’s earnings grew by 28% in Q2

India Inc’s earnings grew by 28% year-on-year during the second quarter ended September excluding the telecom sector, which has seen a massive hit in its bottom lines.

The net profit of around 2,398 companies, not including telecom firms, stood at Rs 1.1 lakh crore, a growth of 28% over the corresponding quarter last year when it had clocked a net profit of Rs 85,929 crore, according to data compiled by CARE Ratings.

However, if the massive losses reported by telecom companies are taken into account, India Inc’s bottom line declined by 65% year-on-year — a level seen only once in the past when bad loan provisioning by banks had caused an astounding 81% decline in corporate earnings during the March quarter of FY2018.