Asian Paints first-quarter consolidated profit falls 20 percent

Asian Paints Ltd (ASPN.NS), India's biggest paint maker by market capitalisation, posted a 20 percent fall in first-quarter consolidated profit on Tuesday.

The company said its decorative business was impacted in June ahead of the rollout of the Goods and Services Tax while higher material prices also squeezed margins.

Consolidated profit was 4.41 billion rupees ($68.48 million) in the three months ended June 30, while total income rose 5 percent to 43.07 billion rupees.