India's biggest petrochemicals maker, Reliance Industries, reported on Friday its past quarter's net profit was Rs 1,083 crore, beating market estimates.

A Reuters survey of five brokerages had forecast the company would post a net profit of Rs 750 crore for October-December.

Reliance, India's largest private-sector company by sales, said it had posted a net profit of Rs 515 crore in the third fiscal quarter to December 2001.

But the net profit figure for the year-earlier period has been restated and excludes gains from the sale of shares, a company official said.

Reliance lowered petrochemicals prices in the past quarter due to tepid demand and higher cost of key raw materials such as naphtha may have squeezed profit margins, analysts said.

"The results have beaten all expectations. We have to see the fine print," said Arun Kejriwal, director at research firm KRIS.