New Delhi, Reliance Industries Ltd(RIL) on Thursday reported a fall of 37.2 per cent in its consolidated net profit on an year-on-year (YoY) basis for the January-March quarter of financial year 2019-20, due to an exceptional item.

The consolidated net profit during the fourth quarter of FY 2019-20 declined to Rs 6,546 crore, against Rs 10,427 crore reported during the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.

In a regulatory filing, RIL said: "Net Profit excluding exceptional items increased by 3.7 per cent to Rs 10,813 crore ($ 1.4 billion)... Net Profit including exceptional items decreased by 37.2 per cent to Rs 6,546 crore ($ 0.9 billion)."

According to the company, the outbreak of coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic globally and in India has caused significant disturbance and slowdown of economic activity.

"During this period, there has been significant volatility in oil prices, resulting in uncertainty and sharp reduction in oil prices. Through the quarter, oil prices declined 73 per cent impacting inventory valuation. In view of the above, the company has provided for non-cash inventory holding losses for the quarter," the filing said.

"This has been disclosed as an Exceptional Item of Rs 4,245 crore, net of tax (tax Rs 899 crore) in the financial results."

The company reported a total revenue of Rs 1,51,209 crore during the quarter under review, down 2.5 per cent from Rs 155,151 crore on a YoY basis. For the financial year 2019-20, the company recorded rise of 0.1 per cent in its consolidated net profit including exceptional item to Rs 39,880 crore ($5.3 billion) as against Rs 39,837 crore in the previous year.

"In spite of the Covid-19 crisis and the lockdowns, the due-diligence by Saudi Aramco for the planned investment in the O2C business is on track as both the parties are committed and actively engaged," the filing said.

Commenting on the results, Mukesh D. Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries Ltd said: "Today I am pleased to announce that despite the daunting challenges arising from the fallout of the global pandemic, our company has once again delivered a resilient performance for FY 2019-20.

"Our O2C (Oil to Chemicals) businesses delivered sustained earnings due to its integrated portfolio, cost-competitiveness, feedstock flexibility and product placement capabilities. We continue to operate all our major facilities at near normal utilisation levels.

"Our consumer businesses further strengthened their leadership positions and recorded robust growth on all operating and financial parameters during the year. Both Retail and Jio, continue to work towards providing superior products and services to Indian consumers."

The company has recommended a dividend of Rs 6.50 per equity share of Rs 10 each for the financial year ended March 31, 2020.