Apollo Tyres today reported 84.21 per cent increase in its consolidated net profit at Rs 180.60 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, mainly on account of robust sales in after-markets.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 98.04 crore in the corresponding period previous year.

The consolidated net income during the third quarter of this fiscal, however, went down marginally to Rs 3,217.35 crore from Rs 3,228.24 crore in the year-ago period.

"Our profit went up as after-market demand is still strong and it is more profitable than the original equipment manufacturers (OEM) segment," Apollo Tyres Chief Financial Officer Sunam Sarkar told PTI.

Besides, the company's newly commissioned radial tyre plant in Chennai contributed to the bottomline, he added.

The Chennai plant currently rolls out 12,000 car and 4,000 truck tyres daily. It produces only radial tyres.

"However, as vehicle sales are down, we have witnessed negative growth in our topline. Our biggest contributor Tata Motors, which purchases both truck and car tyres, are seeing their sales going down. It has impacted us," Sarkar said.

He, however, said the vehicle makers are positive for a turnaround in sales after the recent cut in interest rates and is expecting an industry-friendly Budget.

Out of the consolidated net income, the company's European subsidiary Apollo Vredestein BV contributed with Rs 816 crore, while Rs 105 crore came as net profit, he said.

Commenting on the results, Apollo Tyres Chairman Onkar S Kanwar said: "The dynamics in our largest market -– India, have not been easy. Europe and South Africa too are facing their own economic issues. In India, the commercial vehicle segment has been affected the most, while the other sectors have not remained unscathed."

The company expects the passenger vehicle segment to recover in the next two quarters, while commercial vehicle sales will take more time to normalise, he added.

"Having said that, our continued focus on improving the product and customer mix across geographies has helped us better our profitability. I believe that the worst is behind us and we should see improvement in both automotive and tyre sales from the beginning of the new fiscal," Kanwar said.

Shares of Apollo Tyres were trading 0.35 per cent up at Rs 85.45 apiece on the BSE.