TCS snatches most-profitable tag from Reliance Industries after 6 years

Reliance Industries (RIL) has lost the tag of India’s highest profit-making company to Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) in the March 2020 quarter and the culprit is the Covid-19 pandemic.

At Rs 8,049 crore, TCS’ reported profit after tax (PAT) during the January-March 2020 quarter was ahead of RIL’s reported PAT of Rs 6,348 crore during the same quarter. RIL reported a sharp 39 per cent year-on-year decline in net profit during the quarter, thanks to inventory losses due to a sharp fall in crude oil prices. In comparison, TCS’ net profit was down around one per cent on year-on-year during Q4FY20.

For nearly two decades now, RIL has been the most profitable company in the private sector.