Fulford India Ltd achieved a net profit of Rs.5.94 crore for the year ended December 31, 2003 compared to a loss of Rs. 7.61 crore in the previous year. Gross sales for the year 2003 has grown by 37.8 per cent to Rs. 130.50 crore as against Rs. 94.70 crore for the previous year.

The board of directors of the company has declared a dividend of 20 per cent.

Addressing the AGM, the company’s chairman, R.A. Shah told the shareholders that during the year, the primary care products of the company were ably supported by specialty products with a growth of 64 per cent contributing to 35 per cent of the company’s total sales. “The improvement in profitability was also led by import substitution of some of the materials, implementation of various productivity improvement and cost containment measures, lower tax liability in view of carried forward loss complemented by the commitment of the employees,” said Shah.

“The current year, we expect generic competition to few of our specialty products. The resumption of Netromycin sales from the first quarter and resumption of supplies of tablets during the second half of the year should drive the sales growth further. The company would continue its growth on cost containment and productivity measures to support the bottom line,” he added.