Chennai-based, India Cements has said that its net profit has fallen by a disappointing 60 per cent during the fourth quarter of the financial year 2012-2013 mainly due to rising input costs.

VM Mohan, Joint President - Corporate Finance, India Cements said that the excise duty rose 7 per cent and this impacted net plant realization, which recorded a fall of 6.5 per cent to Rs. 3,248/tonne during the fourth quarter compared to the same quarter of the previous year. The cost of power rose 8 per cent to Rs. 341 crore and 30 per cent rise in transportation cost and this affected profits during the quarter.

The company saw its Transportation and handling costs and other expenses rise in the quarter as it started selling more cement in markets outside of south India due to a slowdown Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The company recorded a rise of 7 per cent in volume and this also led to a rise of about 7 per cent in net sales.

During the financial year, the company said that its net profit fell 44 per cent to Rs. 163.55 crore compared to net profit of Rs. 292.97 crore during the previous year.