Brands
Voltas posts Q3 profit as cooling business offsets project pressures
MUMBAI: The heat may have eased, but the numbers are still warm. Voltas Limited reported a mixed but resilient performance for the quarter ended December 31, 2025, navigating seasonal shifts and project pressures while remaining firmly in profit.
For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations rose to Rs 3,070.8 crore, up from Rs 2,347.3 crore in the previous quarter, aided by stronger traction in its Unitary Cooling Products business. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 3,119.6 crore, compared with Rs 2,411.9 crore in Q2 FY26.
Profit before tax came in at Rs 115.8 crore, more than doubling sequentially from Rs 54.1 crore in the September quarter, even as finance costs edged up to Rs 31.1 crore. Net profit attributable to owners of the company stood at Rs 84.9 crore, reversing a loss of Rs 134.3 crore in the previous quarter, when results were weighed down by adverse inventory movements and segment volatility.
For the nine months ended December 31, 2025, Voltas posted revenue from operations of Rs 9,279.5 crore, compared with Rs 10,592.4 crore in the corresponding period last year. Total income for the nine-month period stood at Rs 9,552.2 crore. Net profit for the period came in at Rs 600.4 crore, down from Rs 710.9 crore a year earlier, reflecting pressure in project-led businesses and higher cost intensity.
Segment-wise, the Unitary Cooling Products division remained the star performer, generating Rs 1,924.2 crore in revenue during the quarter and Rs 6,007.2 crore over nine months, benefitting from consumer demand and pricing discipline. The Electro-Mechanical Projects and Services segment delivered quarterly revenue of Rs 974.2 crore, while Engineering Products and Services contributed Rs 156.6 crore, both continuing to face margin and execution challenges.
At the end of December 2025, total consolidated assets stood at Rs 13,005.1 crore, with total liabilities at Rs 6,498.9 crore, underlining a stable balance sheet despite earnings volatility.
With cooling products cushioning the impact of softer project execution, Voltas’ latest numbers underline a familiar story: seasonal businesses may ebb and flow, but disciplined execution continues to keep the Tata Group company in the game even when the temperature drops.
Brands
Uber launches hotel bookings feature in partnership with Expedia
From hotel bookings to room service at your door, the ride-hailing giant is making its boldest push yet into everyday life
CALIFORNIA: Uber is done being just a taxi app. At its annual GO-GET product event, the world’s leading mobility and delivery platform unveiled a sweeping set of new features designed to plant itself at the centre of how people travel, eat and shop, hotel bookings included.
The headline move is a partnership with Expedia Group that lets Uber users in the United States book hotels directly within the Uber app, with access to a catalogue that will eventually grow to more than 700,000 properties worldwide. Uber One members get 10 per cent back in Uber One credits on all hotel bookings and savings of at least 20 per cent on a rolling list of more than 10,000 hotels globally. Vacation rentals from Vrbo, Expedia Group’s home-rental brand, will be added later this year. The partnership is expected to expand beyond the United States. From June, Uber rides will also be integrated directly into the Expedia app, with push notifications sent to travellers ahead of hotel check-in to book discounted Uber rides for the duration of their stay.
Dara Khosrowshahi, chief executive of Uber, framed the expansion in terms of the modern condition. “Uber is becoming an app for everything, helping people go, get, and now travel all in one place,” he said. “We’re all living through a moment of real cognitive overload: too many apps, too many decisions, too much noise. At the end of the day, our job is to help people reclaim their time, spending less of it managing the logistics of life and more of it actually living.”
Ariane Gorin, chief executive of Expedia Group, struck a similarly ambitious note. “Travel should feel effortless, and this partnership gets us one step closer to offering a seamless traveller experience,” she said. “By connecting our two-sided marketplace with Uber, we’re bringing Uber rides directly into the Expedia app and Expedia Group’s lodging inventory into the Uber app through our Rapid API technology. Together, we’re helping travellers spend less time planning and more time enjoying the journey.”
Beyond hotels, the product announcements come thick and fast. Travel Mode, available within both the Uber and Uber Eats apps, offers curated recommendations on local favourites, tourist destinations, OpenTable restaurant reservations and on-demand delivery to hotel rooms. Uber One International means the membership programme now works globally, allowing members to earn credits on rides abroad that can be redeemed once back home. A new Shop for Me feature lets users request items from any store, even those not listed on the app. Eats for the Way allows riders in select cities booking an Uber Black or Uber Black SUV to have a drink or snack waiting for them in the car. Voice Bookings, powered by artificial intelligence, lets users book a ride conversationally, without touching their phone. And a redesigned One Search bar consolidates results for places, food and items across the entire Uber platform in a single query.
Uber has now logged more than 72 billion trips since it launched in 2010. The question it is now answering is what comes after the ride. The answer, apparently, is everything else. Whether users want a hotel in Paris, a coffee in the back of a car or a snake plant from the local garden centre, Uber would very much like to be the one to provide it. The app economy’s land grab has a new front-runner.
NOTE: The image used is AI generated and only for representational purposes.
