Indian broadcaster New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV), part of the Adani Group, posted a 97.6 percent plunge in quarterly profit yesterday due to weak advertising demand.
The results come as businesses worldwide look to rein in costs such as advertising to ride out an economic downturn caused by persistently high inflation and aggressive interest rate hikes.
NDTV reported a consolidated net profit of Rs. 5.9 million ($72,206.58) for the quarter ended March 31, compared with Rs. 241.6 million a year earlier, a Reuters report stated.
Revenue from operations fell 35.5 percent to Rs. 669.6 million due to a “slowdown in global advertisement spend”, the media company said. Total expenses rose 5.9 percent, driven by production and services costs.
NDTV and other Adani Group-owned companies have seen their share prices take a beating since US short-seller Hindenburg Research on January 24 raised concerns about the conglomerate’s debt levels..
Ports-to-energy conglomerate Adani Group holds an about 64.7 percent stake in NDTV through RRPR Holding and Vishvapradhan Commercial after a contentious battle last year.
Last month, rival TV18 Broadcast Ltd, owned by Reliance Industries Ltd, also reported a slump in quarterly profit, citing lower-than-expected advertising revenue.