Good Morning Dear Share Owners,
It is indeed a great pleasure for me to welcome you all to the 18 th Annual General Meeting of your Company. I appreciate, you spared your valuable time to be with us on this significant occasion. I deem it a great privilege to address this august gathering and to share my views on Steel Industry and discuss the performance of your Company.
It is my proud privilege to present to you the 18 th Annual Report together with the Audited Accounts of the Company for the year ended 30 th June, 2007 for your consideration and adoption and with your permission, I take the liberty of considering it as read.
The Annual Report gives a comprehensive account of the Company's performance and hence, before I dwell upon the performance of your Company during the year let me therefore, take the opportunity of briefly describing the environment in which we operate.
No business can operate in isolation, especially without understanding the economic climate in which it is operating and the competition it is facing. We are living in a highly regulated regime, whether it is an economic policy - making or economic management and the competition, which we are facing from the Steel industries. But, the company is striving to overcome such competition and meet the economic changes.
ECONOMIC SCENARIO The financial year 2006-2007 has been an eventful year for your company as well as for the steel industry. With finished steel output crossing 52 million tones and consumption touching 46 million tones in 2006-2007, India has reached fifth position amongst the world’s steel producing countries behind China, Japan, the US and Russia.
India today in one of the fastest growing economies with a compounded annual growth rate of 8.6% in the last three years. GDP growth for 2006-07 has been 9.4% whereas steel consumption in India during the same period increased by 11.4%. The forecast of growth of above 8.5% for the current year and actual GDP growth of 9.3% for April-June, 2007 augurs well for the steel industry in India.
During the current year India remains an attractive destination for foreign investment and the stock markets are witnessing a sustained bull run. The foreign exchange eserves have touched record levels and the BSE Sensex crossed 20000 mark.
PERFORMANCE HIGHLIGHTS Ladies and Gentlemen,
Let me now briefly share with you the highlights of the Company's performance and significant initiatives adopted to sharpen the competitive strengths of your Company:
The financial year 2006-2007 has been eventful year for your Company as the Towers Division of your Company was demerged with Sujana Towers Limited and Sujana Steels Limited had merged with your Company pursuant to the Scheme of Arrangement and Amalgamation as approved by the Hon’ble High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad on 10.04.2007 which is effective from 04.05.2007. Subsequent to the implementation of the said Scheme, the new shares of your Company has come out for listing w.e.f. 12.07.2007.
Sujana Metal Products Limited has achieved a turnover of Rs.75092.06 lakhs earning profit before tax of Rs.3495.85 lakhs.
FUTURE PROSPECTS:
In the next 10 to 15 years, we may witness unprecedented developments and opportunities for the steel industry. Growing need for infrastructure, urban development, renewed competitiveness of the industrial sector, likelihood of India emerging as a manufacturing hub, all beckon towards a new era. Your Company being one of the developing companies is ideally positioned to seize the emerging opportunities and acquire the scale of a global company. The demand for iron & steel long products is expected to be higher in this year as well on account of the huge investments being planned on infrastructure projects and forecast of revival of the engineering industry. Our Company has capabilities to quickly adapt to the changing market conditions and sustain the projected growth in sales and profits.
Keeping in view the projected growth globally, your company is planning to expand its activities in the global markets.
MAJOR ON GOING ACTIVITIES:
Your Company is in the process of acquiring different industrial undertakings manufacturing and dealing in steel products and also expand the capacities in existing units and for this purpose it is proposed to raise the funds by making the preferential issue of Equity Shares and Convertible Warrants to the Promoters of the Company and others.
HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Sujana Metal Products Limited has conducted training programmes to its employees enabling them to improve/upgrade their skills.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I take this opportunity to thank the members of the Board for their valuable guidance, the members of the staff for their excellent support in achieving corporate objective, our valued customers for their continued patronage and to banks, financial institutions and our shareholders for the confidence they have reposed in us and the support they have extended. I am thankful to our Statutory Auditors.
I also thank the Government of India and the Reserve Bank of India for their guidance.
We solicit similar support and goodwill from our entire stake – holders in the years ahead. And last but not the least I place on record my appreciation for the co-operation extended by SEBI, various state Governments and our Registrar and Share Transfer Agents for their valuable support.
Thank you one and all
Y.S. CHOWDARY
CHAIRMAN.
Note: This does not purport to be the proceedings of the 18 th Annual General Meeting of the Company to be held on Monday, 31 st December, 2007. |