Jio crosses 533 million users as Reliance’s Q1 profit slips 25%

Jio, Reliance Industries’ telecom arm, ended the June quarter with 533 million customers, making it the world’s second-largest telecom operator by subscriber count, the company disclosed as part of its Q1 FY27 results announced on Friday. Data traffic on the network grew 27% during the quarter, while voice traffic rose 2%.

Jio’s ebitda rose 16% year-on-year to Rs 21,255 crore, helped by strong revenue growth and a 150-basis-point expansion in margins. Average revenue per user increased 3% to Rs 216, aided by a better subscriber mix and seasonal gains, though the gain was partly offset by ongoing broadband promotions. Jio, which launched in 2016, remains a central pillar of Reliance’s overall earnings.

At the group level, Reliance Industries reported a 25% fall in consolidated profit to Rs 23,196 crore, though this still beat analysts’ average estimate of Rs 18,550 crore. The decline was mainly attributed to a one-off gain of Rs 8,924 crore booked a year earlier from the sale of Reliance’s stake in Asian Paints. Revenue for the latest quarter rose 25% to Rs 3.1 lakh crore, and ebitda climbed 10% to Rs 51,403 crore, even as expenses increased 27% to Rs 2.9 lakh crore.

‘Reliance has made a steady start to FY27, with all businesses delivering strong operating performance despite continuing geopolitical tensions and volatile commodity markets. This makes me optimistic about the year ahead as we advance our new energy projects and the Jio IPO,’ said chairman and managing director Mukesh Ambani.

The oil-to-chemicals division, which contributed 33% of total operating profit, posted a 17% rise in ebitda to Rs 17,010 crore, supported by stronger fuel margins and cheaper crude sourcing from Russia and Latin America. Reliance’s cash balance of Rs 2.46 lakh crore comfortably covered net debt of Rs 1.22 lakh crore, while capital expenditure for the quarter totalled Rs 38,682 crore.

Image: Wikimedia Commons/by World Economic Forum