Ladies and gentlemen, good day, and welcome to the TVS Motor Company Q2 FY 2024 earnings conference call, hosted by Batlivala & Karani Securities India Private Limited. As a reminder, all participant lines will be in the listen only mode, and there will be an opportunity for you to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please signal an operator by pressing star, then zero on your touchtone phone. Please note that this conference is being recorded. I now hand the conference over Mr. Annamalai Jayaraj, from Batlivala & Karani Securities India Private Limited. Thank you, and over to you, sir.
Thank you, Seema. Welcome all the participants to TVS Motor Company Q2 FY 2024 post earnings conference call. From TVS Motor Company management, we have with us today, Mr. K. N. Radhakrishnan, Director and Chief Executive Officer. I'll now hand over the call to Mr. K. N. Radhakrishnan for the opening remarks, to be followed by the question and answer session. Over to you, sir.
Good evening. Good evening, everyone, and happy greetings to all of you and your family members. I'm extremely happy that company continues on growth trajectory, both in revenue and profit. We are extremely happy that we have posted the highest ever revenue, EBITDA, and profit. Revenue for this quarter is 8,145 crores, grew by 13%. EBITDA is 900 crores, grew by 22%, and PBT, 724 crores, grew by 32%. During the first half of the year, company profit after tax, we have crossed ten billion, that is, 1,004 crores, registering a growth of 38% as against 728 crores during the first half of last year. We are extremely happy that two significant global product launches happened in the last quarter.
One, TVS X and TVS Apache RTR series. I'm very sure that these two launches will delight the customers going forward, both in India as well as many markets globally. Now, coming specifically to the Q2. During this quarter, company's operating revenue grew by 13%, INR 8,145 crore as against INR 7,219 crore during Q2 of last year. In domestic ICE market, company's sales grew by 4%, 7.35 lakh units, as against 7.1 lakh units during last year's same quarter, Q2. And as you know, we have grown ahead of the industry. In the international market, company sold 2.39 lakh units, as against 2.52 lakh units in this quarter. Again, we have done better than the industry.
We are able to see improvement in terms of the customer intake in the international market, and that will help us also to improve our other sales to the market in the international side. During this quarter, company sold 38,000 units of electric vehicles, as against 16,000 units during Q2 of last year. Thanks to all the customers of TVS iQube. The total two-wheelers grew by 6%, 10.31 lakh as against 9.77 lakh during the Q2 of last year. Three-wheeler, we did 23,000 units as against 50,000 units last year in Q2. Overall, sales has been much better this quarter. On profit, during this quarter, company's EBITDA grew by 22%, which is at INR 900 crore as against EBITDA of INR 737 crore.
We registered an operating EBITDA of 11% as against 10.2% during last year, quarter two. This significant milestone was possible with robust growth in revenue and sustained cost reduction initiative taken by the company. The PBT for this quarter grew by 32%, INR 724 crore as against INR 549 crore during Q2 last year. Profit for the current quarter includes a one-time other income of INR 37.5 crore towards fair valuation of the investment. Profit after tax during this quarter is INR 537 crore as against last year's INR 407 crore. Growth of 32%. Now, coming to first half, performance. First half of the company, the operating revenue has grown by 16%.
We are at INR 15,363 crore as against last year's INR 13,228 crore. PBT for the first half of the year grew by 36%, INR 1,334 crore as against INR 981 crore. PBT for the first half of the current year includes other income of INR 93 crore, profit on sale of investment, and fair valuation of investment. Profit after tax for the quarter grew by 38%, and first time we have crossed INR 1,004 crore as against last year, INR 728 crore during the first half of the last year. Now, coming to new products. I think Raider, the Super Squad edition, inspired by the iconic Marvel superheroes, Black Panther and Iron Man. I think all of you know that TVS Raider is doing extremely well in the market.
TVS Raider is a distinct sporting of cycle with powerful trails of Black Panther and Iron Man, will add to its unique positioning and appeal in the market. TVS Jupiter and 125 now enabled with SmartXonnect technology, which comes from TVS. It comes with advanced connected features, which is set to create a new benchmark in this segment, with first-in-class features for its connected customers. The scooter comes in two new colors, Elegant Red and Matte Copper Bronze, with the SmartXonnect variant. We also launched the TVS Apache RTR 310 globally, and it has got impressive blend of power, agility and style. It comes with many segment such features like cruise control, five ride modes, including super moto mode, like control seat, 5-inch TFT control with first of its kind connectivity features and Race Tuned Dynamic Stability Control.
We are extremely happy that since inception of the strategic partnership with BMW Motorrad, the companies, both companies have achieved remarkable milestones, setting a new industry standard and delivering exceptional motorcycles to the customers worldwide. This quarter, in this partnership, we have more than 150,000 satisfied, delighted global customers. Coming to EV, TVS iQube continues to receive very positive customer feedback across all markets and continues to improve sales and market position consistently over the last five quarters. We are extremely happy that we have surpassed 200,000 unique sales mark, and we would like to thank these 200,000 customers of TVS iQube, and it is continuously growing in market share as well. During the quarter, we ramped up production to 25,000 per month, and then we will take it to the next level. We have a very good booking.
Healthy booking continues. We are expanding the availability of TVS iQube in India. At the end of September, we have 337 touchpoints, and we are now continuously expanding the same. We are also planning to launch a series of products in the range of 5-25 kilowatts in the next 1 year. All of you have witnessed the TVS X during this quarter, and we will start delivering to the customers in Q3. TVS X is set to definitely redefine the way we look at EV globally. This is designed, developed and made in India. TVS X will lead the way to become a global benchmark for a machine that is born electric. It is thrill electric.
This quarter, we announced the start of production of BMW CE 02, jointly designed and developed by TVS and along with BMW Motorrad, and that is also going to be a huge success globally. With the product lineup plan from TVS and continuous improvement in infrastructure, we are confident that we will continue to be a strong player in the EV segment. Now, coming to TVS Credit, all of you have seen its outstanding performance. The book size has already crossed INR 23,500 crore. It is, its portfolio is well diversified, covering tractors, used vehicles, consumer durables and a company besides two-wheeler. PBT for the quarter grew by 39%, INR 180 crore against last year's INR 129 crore in the same quarter of Q2.
When you look at Q3 2023-2024, ongoing festival season has started well for us, and it is on a positive note. So far, during the Dasara season, we have grown ahead of the market, ahead of the industry. The dispersion of monsoon is definitely little bit affecting the sentiment, especially in the rural, but we are hoping that things should improve in this month and next month. International market, we are witnessing improvement in the retail, and we expect slowly and steadily the momentum will continue and grow, and that will definitely help TVS in a big way. Customers of TVS Raider, TVS Jupiter 125 are extremely delighted, and the volumes of this product will further enhance our market share and growth, both in domestic market and the international market.
As all of you know, we have an excellent product portfolio, starting from Apache, Jupiter 110, Jupiter 125, Raider, and Star Range, XL in the international market, Radeon, TVS King in three-wheeler and TVS Ronin. We expect TVS to definitely grow ahead of the industry, both in domestic and international markets. I'm very confident that TVS X and the recently launched Apache RTR will do very well for the company. We have seen overall, we have grown very well in the top line and continuous focus on the premiumization, leveraging the scale benefits, focused work on the sustained material cost reduction. Our EBITDA has reached 11%, and we want to continue to have this momentum of growing the top line ahead of the industry and continuously improving EBITDA. Thank you.
Sir, shall we begin with the question and answer session?
Yes, please.
Sure. Ladies and gentlemen, we will now begin with the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press star and one on the touchtone telephone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press star and two. Participants are requested to use handsets while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question queue assembles. We take the first question from the line of Mr. Kapil Singh from Nomura. Please go ahead, sir.
Good evening, sir. Congratulations on performance. I'll start with. Yeah, I'll just start with the performance for season. You mentioned that, you know, the festive season, you have grown ahead of the industry. Can you just tell us what would be the industry growth in your estimate and how much has TVS grown during the festive season?
I think today, all of you know the Vahan number, because there is a, there is a lag. So we saw this Vahan, we have grown. That is exactly what I said, and we want to continue the momentum. And we are, we are definitely looking at the same growth rate to continue for the Diwali season. Possibly, you will see little better growth coming from the rural area. Urban is doing very well. So we want to really use this opportunity because Sankranti is around the corner in another 10 days, and this year we are expecting Diwali also to do well, both for the industry and, we want to do better than the industry.
Sure, sir. And just on the cost side, if you could talk us through. We have seen a good improvement in raw material to sales, but at the same time, we have seen strong growth in other expenses as well. So if you could just call out, what's going on there and, what is the cost outlook as we look forward, or any pricing changes?
See, we have done extremely very well. The combination of some moderate price increases, plus the overall, when you look at the material cost reduction and the product mix, that has helped us to be better in terms of the margin we had in last quarter, last year, same quarter. So I think overall it is moving in the right direction. And with respect to the cost, as you know, we had two product launches in the last quarter. So this is very, very important because we always invest behind building brands. And areas like, you know, salaries, we invest in really in EV.
And also we are really putting more effort in digital and analytics area, strengthening the company, software area. So these are all investment for future, because this is something TVS has always done, and we will continue to do that. This is something for the future, and we don't want to. We want to invest behind the brand, we want to invest behind design and development. We want to invest in people, especially in these areas of new technology, digital, AI. Okay? These are the areas.
Sure, sir. If you could just talk about the cost outlook as we move ahead and any pricing changes that we have done during the current quarter, which is October to December period.
Yeah. October to no pricing increases so far, but we constantly look at, you know, pricing opportunities because this is something we constantly look at. And I can tell you, thanks to the customers, we are able to appropriately review and take the prices. On cost, I think, I'm of the opinion that this year, next two quarters, I don't think the costs are going to go up. Maybe you may get some opportunity of slightly soften side of the situation in terms of the material cost.
Sure, sir. Thank you and wish you all the best. I'll come back in the queue.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you, sir. The next question is from the line of Mr. Pramod Kumar from UBS. Please go ahead, sir.
Yeah. Thank you a lot for the opportunity, and congratulations on a good set of numbers, sir. And, continuing with Kapil's question on other expenditure and your explanation of the launches, sir, you wouldn't be having this kind of a large-scale launch on a regular basis, right? Because, here you had two launches, both done in the international market, which you've never done before. So I'm just trying to understand, the, is there something which you can expect will normalize a bit the other expenditure, especially on launch-related events and all that going forward?
Marketing, we treat it as an investment, Pramod, because it is not only product, you have to build TVS brand globally. Like when we presented TVS Tech and RCR, we said that we want to be not only in the developing economies, we want to be in the developed economies also.
Yes.
So it requires investment, and we will definitely invest, okay? And we will continue to invest the way in the products, because the strength of TVS is, one, customer, customer satisfaction, customer delight in the existing products, and really focusing on technology and investing in products which are really, really superior in features, technology, and delivering that. That requires a lot of investment to communicate across to the customer. So we will continue to invest, but we will be prudent. If you look at this quarter, we are not participating in discounts, we are participating in investment to build the brand, so that will continue.
Okay. So any. okay, fair enough. I, I get the bit. The second question is on the international side, sir, and, related to even EVs, as to if you can just help us understand, what is the path for you in terms of, taking electric vehicles to the international market, where are we in that journey? And what are the kind of milestones you're looking at, especially with X coming on board now and even the supplies to BMW starting?
And, generally, if you can just comment on the directional trends on, the profitability in the EV business, because scale is something you've been working towards. So generally, are the, are the economics of the EV business getting better with every, every passing month as you scale, as you, as you can ramp up volumes? If you can just make some concrete color on the EV profitability, EV cost structure as well, sir.
This quarter is the highest number on EV.
Okay.
I think we have done almost 60,000 EV, okay? This 11%, we have delivered with EV, okay?
Yes.
That is one important point all of you need to know. Second, second is, international market, we have started, giving it to some of the markets, iQube. Now, in the next 2-3 quarters, iQube should be available in many markets.... We want to take it to many markets, and at some point of time, I think we will also get it to Europe. So there is a very clear strategy plan and a very clear network plan we have put, and, we will, we will take our EV, in every market.
And of course, in a product like TVS, that domestic and international markets, both the developing and developed markets will be the key. And we are also looking at the pipeline of products in the EV side coming in the next 4 quarters. We will have a range where it will be delighting the customers in Indian market as well as Indian international market.
And sir, talking about pipeline, by when do you expect to take the electric three-wheeler in the domestic market to new cities, and also by when can I expect the cargo version? So because you've never done cargo before with ICE. And how's the business opportunity looking here? Because we don't have much of exposure to the domestic three-wheeler market historically. So how should one look at the EV launch, and is it a meaningful market you're or meaningful volumes you're aspiring to get in the domestic market?
Product is getting ready. I think we are very confident that our EV three-wheeler will do well. And closer to launch, I can give you more color on which markets we are planning to launch and how we are going to go about. But we are pretty confident on the three-wheeler EV, and it will be available, you know, closer to launch, I'll give you more details on that. We are looking at focusing on three-wheeler. Definitely, this is one area we need to improve. And three-wheeler in international market, we are extremely well, and there also we will use this EV three-wheeler going forward.
The final one on the investments in subsidiaries, Singapore, where, where is this money largely going in, the INR 237 crore? That's the last question. Thank you.
The investments are for future. It is, it is a combination of, some investments are one for TVS Credit Services, for about INR 100 crore. Then, SEMG and Norton. And some of the other new investments we have also done in TVS Digital and the new Zapp. These are all strategic investments for the future. If you look at it, during last year's quarter four, we made investment of almost INR 300 crore in Singapore. The same was shown at that time as share aggregation, money pending allotment. Please understand, these are investments for future, and we are pretty confident that this will start seeing the results going forward.
Thanks a lot. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Gunjan Prithyani from Bank of America. Please go ahead.
Yeah, hi. Thanks for taking my question. So just, extension of this investment in subsidiaries, I see two items there. One is invested 236 crore, and one is disinvestment of about 100 crore. Now, disinvestment, I'm assuming, is for the private equity sale we did during the quarter. And investment breakup, can you, can you, reconfirm again that, you know, 100. You know, how much of it is going to TVS Credit and other subsidiaries? Like, little bit more color on these two line items, please.
I gave you TVS Credit Services was almost INR 100 crore-
Okay.
During this period, and remaining, Norton was about close to INR 180 crore or so, and SEMG, another INR 190 crore. So these are as per plan, and the other things are for TVS Credit Service, sorry, TVS Digital, which are futuristic in nature.
Okay. Sir, just you know, trying to get in terms of incremental investments, like you know, with Norton, the product is probably now a lot of spends have been done. So if I think about you know, outside of TVS Credit, the other subsidiaries, how do you see the magnitude of these investments? Do you see these incrementally coming down from where they are right now? Also, if you can share some color on the losses for this quarter, because I see there's a more you know, bigger loss from the subsidiaries in this quarter versus what we've seen in the past few quarters. You know, almost if I you know, if I look at the just the pure consolidated minus standalone, so INR 120 crore loss. And within this TVS Credit has been profitable, right? So do you see this sort of line item continuing?
Please understand, as you know, Norton, we have a very clear product plan. Any such super premium brand requires not one product. You may have to have a series of products where you need to invest in design, development, and product readiness. That is what is going on, and that will continue for the next eight quarters. With respect to this particular quarter, please understand that if you look at the e-bike business, I think unfortunately, the entire European market is going through less growth, high inflation, and that is also affecting the demand.
So whatever the top line we were looking at, there are some trends, but we are pretty confident, because these are things which is beyond your control. The industry go through some tough times. You know, you have to be calm and patient, and then control all the parameters of the cost. I am very confident that these are investments which are in the right direction, e-bike companies and these are new, these are products which are definitely going to help us in terms of going forward, quarter after quarter. You will see things changing in the e-bike business.
Okay, so bulk of that is coming from the e-bike business because of the macro, issues out there?
Yes, yes. I think overall, there is a trust in the European market. Whatever we have seen in the, in the financial, market of TVS so far, we are able to see similar or some markets, you know, but then we are seeing in that range of 5%-6% in this market, which never we have seen. So I think this we have to attribute, and we have to be little bit patient and calm, and we have done the investment with the right strategic areas, and we are pretty confident that we will get once the industry is back, and it will happen very shortly.
Sure. And sorry, sir, just little, you know, harping on this, but just the pace of investments in Norton, do you see that substantial has done and incrementally it comes off, like, any color on the pace of investments in Norton in, you know, over the next 12-18 months?
I can give you only confidence by saying that you people have asked same questions on three TVS, and we are consistently now delivering profit after profit. Thanks for saying that there, and thanks for putting the effort on the new product there. I think, you give me a few more quarters, Norton will start that they are delivering very good results for the company.
Okay, sure. And second question, sir, I have on the export outlook. Can you share, you know, give us a little bit more color as to what you're seeing on the ground in terms of, you know, have you seen retail market recovery with, you know, little bit color on various markets, what's happening in Nigeria? And how big is this EV opportunity? Is it more about Southeast Asian markets or, you know, is it beyond Southeast Asian markets?
International markets, according to me, including Africa, we saw the times in terms of currency revaluation and also currency availability. Slowly it is settling down, settling down. So I am of the view that now the retails are picking up. We should understand that the entire African market is all about taxi, okay? Commuting will happen. There are investments behind road infrastructure and many things are happening. At this point of time, please understand there is a stress in the market, but according to me, the worst is over. But the recovery, you have to be patient. But what is good about TVS is we don't keep more stocks in the market. We align with the retails in the market, and I'm pretty confident that the retails are growing for us, and we will also grow.
In line with that, our numbers will also grow. Little bit more patience is required because many of these markets have gone through high inflation, okay? All the challenges of some of the, some of the, you know, side effects of the war, whatever we have seen. I'm pretty confident that slowly and steadily you will see month after month, quarter after quarter, this developing market coming back. Okay?
So I'm confident that. And on EV, I think both ASEAN markets. In my opinion, ASEAN markets and African markets will move towards EV, okay? There are early signs, but what is most important is we need to invest behind products and invest behind customers, because market by market, we have to look at what is the product which is liked by the customer. Like we did iQube, like we are now doing TVS X, like we are now coming up with a fourth quarter, fifth quarter product launch. I think this is very, very important, and that is strength of TVS. We invest behind R&D, we invest behind marketing, we invest behind products, and most importantly, we work for the customers. Because customer makes us succeed, nothing else. You focus on the customer. I am pretty confident that, be patient, one or two quarters, you know, we will succeed.
Sure. Thank you so much, sir. I'll join back the queue.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. Chandramouli Muthiah from Goldman Sachs. Please go ahead, sir.
Hi, good evening, and thank you for taking my question. So my first question is on the product mix. I think this quarter, the Raiders and Jupiters have done extremely well, maybe slightly at the cost of the Apache. So just trying to understand, are we seeing customers incrementally switch to the Raider from the Apache platform? I just want to understand your thoughts on how the mix is being managed.
First of all, it is not at the cost of Apache, let me clarify, because Apache is a completely different set of customers, different set of brands, okay? Raider is focused on different set of customers, and, definitely there is no interaction between Jupiter to Apache, okay? So TVS stands focusing on the customer separately, and we focus on very, very clear recommendation of the customer. Apache is for certain set of customers, Raider is for certain set of customers, and Jupiter is for certain set of customers. But most importantly, we have to focus and deliver the numbers, which is what is happening, and we are extremely happy the way in which Apache is also moving in the market. Raider is moving, Apache is moving, Jupiter is moving, okay? And, we are, we are definitely looking at improving the product mix going forward.
Quarter after quarter, you will see, okay? And, we always look at. I always tell you that we don't keep more than 25-30 days of stock. So we always keep, because we want the fresh vehicles to go to the customers. So we moderate based on our customer retail, our discussion, and we want to adhere to that very, very strictly. And as you know, we are completely cash and carry even in the domestic market. Okay, we don't give any credit. So this requires some ups and downs, because we align with our principle of giving fresh vehicle to the customer. That doesn't mean that some customer goes up, we target something else. That doesn't happen in TVS. I hope I have clarified.
Got it. Got it. That's helpful. My second question is on the product pipeline that you spoke about earlier in the call on electric two-wheelers. So just trying to understand, I mean, we've had a successful launch of the iQube. We've launched more premium TVS X. So in terms of covering maybe some of the lower price point, electric two-wheeler categories, maybe slightly lower kilowatt-hours, battery formats. Over the next four quarters, could you just outline some of your plans? Is it sort of one product per quarter, sort of run rate that you were referring to before, or just any color around that timeframe would be extremely helpful.
You have seen our product range starting from Jupiter, you have seen Ntorq, you have seen now Jupiter 125, okay? So our principle will be to look at the customer, customer segments and focusing on that, okay? To me, price and, price and kilowatt are just input, which customer doesn't see. Customer see product, they see the total cost of operation, they look at the overall package. Price is only one element, and kilowatt is only another element. So you have to look at a holistic, you know, like I always say, iQube is a full Jupiter for that customer.
He gets all the benefits of hundred and ten or hundred and twenty-five cc Jupiter with completely connected, completely EV, you know, all the benefits of EV. So, customer look at from that point of view, and that is exactly the way we look at also from the company side. I promise you, close to a lot, I'll give you next four quarter plan for which product, which quarter will be coming.
Got it. That's helpful. Just lastly, I had a housekeeping clarification. If you could just share the export and the spares revenue, please.
Just give me a minute. I'll tell you. You want export revenue, huh?
Yeah, export revenue and spares revenue, if you could share, that'll be helpful.
Let's share, let's share. I think this quarter, our export revenue is about INR 2,008 crore. And, spare parts is just a minute. Parts is about INR 765 crore.
Got it. Got it. Thank you very much and all the best.
This is for Q2, okay? Whatever number I'm giving you is for Q2.
Got it. Got it. That's it.
Sure.
Thank you very much and all the best.
Thank you.
Thank you, sir. The next question is from the line of Amyn Pirani from JP Morgan. Please go ahead, sir.
Yes, hi. Thanks for the opportunity and, seasonal greeting to you and the team as well, sir. My first question is actually on the TVS X. You know, you have launched it at a very, you know, very high price point. So given the customer feedback that you have received till now, what do you think the potential of such a product is in India? And should we view it more as a product for the export markets like Europe and ASEAN?
See, India, according to me, is the biggest market. Premium and super premium is going to be order of the day in India, okay? So I think India is the first market for any product of TVS will be developing, okay? So TVS X will do extremely well because it is a premium electric crossover, and it is definitely, definitely going to have many things which are first of its kind. And, please remember, price is only one element. Customer looks at the package.
When he looks at the package, there are so many things which are new in TVS X, I, I'm very sure it is going to delight the customer. It is going to redefine completely the premium products in India. It is completely something all of us can be proud, designed and developed and made in India. With so many global benchmarks in that, so it is, it is going to redefine the super premium and premium category in India. Not only in India, definitely this is a product which should be also launched in every market, including developed market. So we have a very clear strategy saying that TVS X is going to redefine India. It is also going to be the defining TVS in the global market. I would like to put it that way.
Understood, sir. And sir, if I can add any initial feedback, because I think you showed a version of this at the Indonesia Motorcycle Show recently, in partnership with some Singaporean, you know, company, ION Mobility. Any initial feedback and any timeline for launch in that market?
Very positive. Very positive. First, we have to deliver the numbers in India, which we are planning, just after Diwali, that we promise. And then, possibly next year, we want to start in, many markets, including Indonesia. I would put it like, like that.
Understood, sir. And just, lastly, one question on Norton. I think you have finally launched the newly engineered vehicles, like the Commando in the U.K. market. So again, you know, any initial response from customers as well as any timeline for a global launch, including India?
See, these are products. All of you know that, you know, Norton had so many customers demanding many products. So we are trying to meet up some of the pending requirements from some of the customers. That is why we have delivered this product, okay? Now, we are completely redefining using Norton team and previous team to come up with a very prudent product plan for the future premium categories. Work has already started, very clear lineup has been put in terms of the products and when it will be delivered. I'm very happy the way we are investing and putting the products, and I'm pretty confident that going forward, you will see this product coming into the market. Closer to the delivery of the product, I can share more information. Okay? But rest assured, Norton is going to delight the customers globally.
Okay, sir. Thank you and all the best, sir. Thanks a lot.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. Jinesh Gandhi from Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Please go ahead, sir.
Hi, sir. A couple of clarifications. One is, you indicated that you have invested INR 100 crore in TVS Credit, so this is more about divestment of INR 100 crore, which happened. We've invested INR 100 crore separately.
Repeat, repeat your question.
Our notes account says that we have divested INR 100 crore in compulsorily convertible preference shares of TVS Credit. Beyond this, we have invested INR 100 crore as well, is it?
No, no, no. See, Q1 we invested INR 200 crore, and Q2 we have re-invested INR 100 crore. So the net-
Oh, net for the first half. Got it, got it, got it.
Yeah. So I said the word net, possibly you are not correct.
Right, right, right. And, given that, we have already invested about INR 850 crore in the first half, how do we look at total investment budget for FY 2024? We were only looking at INR 800 crore to INR 1,000 crore, but we are already at about INR 850 crore in the first half. So, how do you, how do you look at the investments in for the full year?
INR 623 crore. Correct, and whatever we gave as guideline, that this year we will be looking at close to INR 800 crore to INR 900 crore, that will be the kind of investment we will look at.
Okay, INR 800 crore to INR 900 crore is still... Okay, got it. And CapEx will remain at about INR 1,000 crore, right? For-
Yeah. CapEx is going to be on the easy side.
Right. Okay. And, for Apache, we have seen some bit of weakness in wholesale volumes in recent months. Is there any supply side issue there, or is it-
Again, again, I'm repeating, Apache is for a different set of customers, and we are seeing excellent pull in the market. But please understand, we have to look at the market in terms of, different, different customer segments.
Sure.
Different, different customer segments, we are seeing Apache moving in the right direction. That would be no issue.
Okay.
Raider is a different set of customers. There also, it is moving in the right direction. But please remember, we normally look at keeping 25-30 days of stock, you know, and we want to continue to give the fresh vehicles to the customer. That we keep moderating, depending upon how the customer retails are happening in the market.
Sure. But is there any production-related issue there, given that wholesale is different?
Absolutely no issue.
Got it. Got it. And lastly, if you can share, USD-INR rate for this quarter?
You want, rupee?
Yeah.
Just, just a minute. Just a minute. It is about INR 82.5.
INR 82.5. Great, sir. Thanks and all the best.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. M umuksh Mandlesha from Anand Rathi. Please go ahead, sir.
Yeah. Thank you for the opportunity, sir, and Happy Festive Season to the management. Can you talk about the new markets expansion potential, like Venezuela? And can you talk about the other major markets which company plans to enter going ahead, which are major markets which have not yet not been addressed by the company?
See , LATAM, let me, let me not only look at Venezuela. I think there is a great opportunity for the kind of products what we have in the LATAM market. The, the size of the market is so big, LATAM, and TVS has got the best range. So we have started the journey focusing on leveraging Apache, leveraging Raider, leveraging our Ntorq. We are also trying to leverage some of the products from Indonesia. So the next focus, strategic focus will be the LATAM country. So you will see disproportionate focus in the LATAM market because it is a market which will do extremely well for us in the future. I think we started focusing earlier in Africa. Africa is doing very well for us. Now we have started focusing on LATAM, so this is a great opportunity for TVS to establish a big way in LATAM.
Got it, sir. And also, can you talk about the volume potential for the BMW CE 02, for India and the global market, sir?
The BMW CE 02, they have their very clear plans, okay? And, they, they will be launching sometime next year, just after the winter, I think March, April. I think the production has started. I think the initial feedback is very positive. On numbers, I may not be able to give you guideline because it is their brand. CE 02 is their brand, okay? So they will definitely give, looking at the product and the feedback, whatever, BMW has shared with us, I think it is going to be an outstanding success in the market.
Thank you so much for the opportunity, sir.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. Pramod Amthe from InCred. Please go ahead, sir.
Yeah, hi. Thanks, for this opportunity. So first question is with regard to the increase in inventory in the PNL. So this is the second successive quarter we are increasing. Is it all towards this quarter seems to be much more lumpier, compared to last quarter. Is it all related to finished goods or raw material?
Can you say what is the question? I didn't hear properly.
Sure. So what I was referring to is the increase in inventory of almost INR 260 crore, which you show in PNL. This is on top of the INR 100 crore of last quarter, so almost around INR 350 crore of increase in inventory.
That is only because of the peak season. That is only because of the peak season. Because normally all of you know that this season, the Dussehra and Diwali, we have to make sure that, there are no line stoppers in production. So it is a very prudent call from the company to, to keep the material stock, especially the input material.
What's the number of days you have in terms of stock on finished goods and the raw material?
Finished goods, I told you, we are always looking at, for example, end of the season, we will have less than four weeks of stock.
Sure. And the second question is with regard to the iQube. Looking at the results and considering that you have significantly gained market share and volume in the quarter, is it. And this is in spite of the FAME incentives substantially cutting down. So is it fair to assume you will be making similar margins as a corporate margin on iQube in spite of the FAME incentive going off? Is that a fair assumption or is it a drag on the cluster?
Please, please understand, iQube is a completely new EV product, okay?
Right.
Last time also, I said that we are making a positive contribution. Okay? It is an investment behind new technology, new area, okay? We have to be patient. We have to be patient because that will start yielding better and better results going forward. Okay? Beyond that, I think we have to look at as an overall company, how we are moving in terms of, investment. To me, EV and the product range, I think we have to be little patient, but it will result in the going forward, because there are, there are many things which are, which are going to help us. You know, the sell costs are going to come down. Scale benefits only can help you optimize the material cost and supply chain.
More and more products you launch in India and many markets, you will have opportunity to increase. So the strategy what we believe in, customer, customer, customer, delighting the customer, growing the top line by launching a range of products in every segment. These two are priority one and two, and then you will start getting the benefits, two, the benefits of cost and sustainable growth in EBITDA margin. So that strategy will continue as well as EV as, you know, as I speak. So I don't want to give you any guidance separately on EV.
Sure. So, only question was, this positive contribution coming through was pre-FAME cut or even the post-FAME cut, you see the positive contribution continuing on the iQube?
Positive contribution, FAME has already been cut. All of you know that. Okay?
Sure.
So I think it's a factor of overall volume. It's a factor of overall cost, the cell technology changing, okay? And the overall volume going up, okay? And future new product what we are planning to launch, and the overall volume again, going up. So it's a combination of many strategies, and that focus will continue.
Sure. Thanks a ton, sir.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. Raghun andhan from Nuvama Institutional Equities. Please go ahead, sir.
Congratulations, sir, on good number. Sir, on the festival season, Navratri growth is in double digits as per Vahan. Considering the strong festival season, can you talk a little bit about urban and rural demand? You indicated that urban demand is very strong. How is rural doing?
See, rural demand is expected. Please understand, rural area, how do we look at? Thanks to the kind of changes in the legislation and also the kind of transition to BS-VI, also the third party insurance cost. So if I look at and say, these are, which are all fair, the cost, if you look at the entry-level products which are high demand in the rural market, but prices are gone up by 40%-45%. Their income levels are not gone up. Now, they are getting the confidence that there won't be lockdown, the worries about the pandemic, the worries about hospitalization has come down. I think we have to be little patient.
India's strength is rural, and unfortunately, what has happened is, this year, all of you know that certain markets we had, the monsoon much higher, certain markets, it is deficient more than 35%. There's an imbalance, you know, which none of us thought through. So it's a, it's a question of-... Now, the rural confidence is improving, their income levels are going up. They are not so much worried about any more hospitalization. I think time will come where-- and, and infrastructure investment from the government is going on in a very nice way. I'm pretty confident that rural will come back. We have to show a little bit of patience, okay? And definitely, the retail finance companies are also definitely supporting. So I think it's a question of time, okay? And, these, all these products will do very well.
So if you look at when you look at the entry-level products, starting from moped and entry-level motorcycles, they are having huge strength, okay? And some of the markets are here and there. You, all of you must be knowing the tractors are also having huge strength. So this will improve, because from worry, some, they have not started earning income, okay? I am able to get a early indicator that this year, Diwali, definitely the consumption of many aspects in the rural are going to be better and better. So I'm pretty confident that the two-wheelers will come back, okay? And when prices have come up 40%-48%, their income has not gone up 40%-48%. Please understand that. So we have to be a little bit more patient when it comes to rural. That is the point I'm highlighting.
Thank you, sir. Sir, your associate company, Ultraviolette, is in electric motorcycles. On TVS launching more price competitive electric motorcycles, what would be your thought process? What kind of timeline you would envisage, considering players like Ola are getting into this segment?
I don't know about Ola. I respect all my competitors. We have a very clear segment-wide plan, okay? Closer to the launch plan, I will let you know what kind of products and which segments we are looking at, okay? I'll definitely highlight much before the launch.
Thank you, sir. On the electric scooters, you know, they are profitable at contribution level. On PLI scheme, some of the four-wheeler OEMs have received approval. Are you expecting to get PLI approval and incentives in second half of this year?
We are very closely working with MHI and PLI team, and we are confident that you know TVS very qualified and I think it's a work in progress.
Thank you, sir. Wishing you all the best, and festive greetings.
Thank you. Thank you.
Thank you. The next question is from the line of Mr. Arvind Sharma from Citi. Please go ahead, sir.
Yeah, hello. Good evening, sir, and thank you for taking my question. Sir, two questions from my side. First, on the Jupiter versus iQube. Since you said that iQube virtually fills all the void, or all the expectations that Jupiter has. So in your interaction with customers, has there been any impact on Jupiter demand versus iQube? Overall, looks strong, but in your interaction with customers, is there any shift from Jupiter to iQube?
See, currently, you know, the overall scooter market share, category share, let me not use the word market share. Out of 100 two-wheelers, currently the scooter is about 30%, 32%. Okay? With EV in scooters, I am expecting this 32% will significantly, this category share of scooter will go up. And there will be opportunity to ICE to grow and EV to grow. So there is no. Because TVS has got a strong brand preference, both in scooters. So having an iQube is going to help us to grow Jupiter faster and better.
Sure. Thank you so much, sir, for the market share gain comment. Sir, one very specific question to the Norton account. This, the other income of INR 37.55 crore, you said it's a valuation of an investment. Which investment is this, sir?
It is just a minute. Let me, let me check. It is typing. It is TVS Supply Chain Solution. Hello?
Hello.
Yeah, it is from TVS Supply Chain Solution.
Okay. And last quarter was also similar, last year quarter was also around INR 57.6 crore. What was that, sir?
I'll have to check. I think you have to give me some time.
No worry, sir. That, that's fine. TVS Supply Chain Solutions. That's good, sir. Thank you so much for taking my question.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
The next-
Can you take the last question, please?
Sure, sir. The next question is from the line of Mr. Ashish Jain from Macquarie India. Please go ahead, sir. Mr. Ashish, your line is on the talk mode, sir. Please go ahead with your question. Hello, Mr. Ashish, can you hear us, sir?
I'm not able to hear. I'm not able to hear Ashish.
Sir, there's no response from the line of Mr. Ashish.
Okay.
Shall we move on to the next question?
Yeah, that should be the last question, please.
Yes, sure. The next question is from the line of Mr. Srikant Palani from Axis Securities Limited. Please go ahead, sir.
I just have a query with regards to the business. Generally in the international market, we have been seeing that either OEMs are in for production of their own batteries, or they are entering into joint ventures with battery manufacturers. So going ahead, what is our strategy with this regard?
I am not able to understand. There is some kind of, you know, the loud volume and some kind of a backup noise. Can you repeat the question, please?
So my query is with regards to the battery manufacturing side. Some of the OEMs in EV battery forms a major component of your cost. So some of the OEMs are going for their own production line, and some OEMs have entered into a long-term strategic partnership with battery manufacturers. So going ahead for TVS, what will be the strategy with regards to this?
No, we will study very closely. Currently, the battery management system in India is completely designed and developed in-house. We only source cells. So the strength of TVS is our design and development capability and investment behind that. Now, when we go to various countries, that is the strategy which will be developed, and we will let you know what will be our strategy going forward when we decide which countries and how we are planning to go.
Okay. Thank you. Thank you, sir.
Thank you.
Ladies and gentlemen, that was the last question for the day. I would now like to hand the conference over to the management for closing remarks.
First of all, thanks to all of our customers. You know, as I highlighted, the quarterly operating revenue crossed INR 8,000 crore for the first time, and we grew ahead of the industry, thanks to customers and the kind of product portfolio what TVS has got. Operating EBITDA margin, we crossed into 11%. EBITDA is 11%, is the highest. Actual profit after tax crossed, first time, INR 1,000 crore. And TVS iQube, thanks to all the 200,000 customers. Thank you for the full faith in TVS and TVS quality. And this gives us enough energy to put our product line into the market and take EV to the next level in the domestic market, as well as international market.
With our unwavering focus on consumer, customers, quality, we are confident of going ahead of the industry, and we will continue to leverage our scale benefits, focus to premiumization, sustain material cost reduction, and doing the right investment between products and marketing. We will build TVS brand globally, and we will continue to improve our EBITDA going forward. Happy Diwali to all of you and your family. God bless and thank you.
Thank you, sir. On behalf of Batlivala & Karani Securities, that concludes this conference. Thank you for joining us, and you may now disconnect your lines.