More bad news came late in the evening from Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Ltd, which reported 10 per cent growth in net profit, disappointing analysts who were predicting 25 per cent. Taking into account extraordinary income, its net profit dropped 19.33 per cent.

However, Anil Ambani-controlled Reliance Communications put things back on track by reporting a scorching 154 per cent increase in net profit and saw its stock gain 3.68 per cent.

Help came from foods company Nestle India, which announced a 22.39 per cent rise in net profit to Rs 108.45 crore. Its net sales too grew at a healthy 27.68 per cent.

Till yesterday, 561 companies had announced results for the quarter ended March 31 this year and reported a nearly 33 per cent rise in their combined net sales and 43.21 per cent in net profit.

HLL, whose board recently passed a resolution to change its name to Hindustan Unilever Ltd, said its net profit, excluding gains from asset sales in the previous quarter, rose 13.6 per cent to Rs 334 crore.

Taking the asset sale into account, net profit dropped 11.8 per cent. This growth was less than estimated because sales of skin creams, shampoos and toothpaste grew at a slower pace.

"Inflationary pressures remain a cause for concern, but we continue to steer aggressive cost-effectiveness programmes, manage judicious price increases and drive for an improved portfolio mix," Chairman Harish Manwani said in a statement.

Sales of HLL's personal care products, accounting for more than a quarter of revenue, grew 7.3 per cent, compared with 27 per cent in the same quarter of the previous year.

This is the second consecutive quarter that its sales of skin creams and other personal products have lagged expectations. In the quarter ended December 31, the company's sales of Pond's and Fair & Lovely skin cream slowed because of a short winter.

Reliance Communications reported a net profit of Rs 1023.3 crore for the quarter, compared with Rs 403 crore in the same period of 2005-06.

This continues a buoyant quarter for telecom companies, which are cashing in on India's emergence as one of the fastest growing markets in the world for wireless telephony, adding an astounding 6 million users every month.

The country's largest private telecom company, Bharti Airtel, had reported a 98 per cent rise in its net profit.

Addressing a press conference, Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani said the company recorded all-round growth and better margins, deriving leverage from the growing scale of operations, in the last financial year, which was its first year of operations after listing with the stock exchanges.