Mumbai, Aug 2 (IANS): Jeweller and watchmaker Titan Ltd on Friday said its standalone net profit declined by 1 per cent to Rs 770 crore in the April-June quarter from Rs 777 crore in the same quarter last year as higher gold prices dampened demand.

The Tata Group company's revenue from operations in the first quarter of the current fiscal rose nine per cent to Rs 11,263 crore, compared to Rs 10,306 crore in the same period last year.

Titan managing director CK Venkataraman said: "In the recently presented Union Budget, the customs duty on gold imports in the country has been reduced from 15 per cent to 6 per cent. This development has long-term positive implications for the jewellery industry. While this change is likely to entail a short-term impact in the form of value loss on duty-paid gold inventory (expected to be expensed over the next two quarters), we remain optimistic on the longer-term benefits as it makes the market equitable for large businesses like ours."

"Our first quarter performance reflects mixed consumer trends in lifestyle categories. While the inclement weather conditions during the summers, general elections and lower wedding days impacted retail walk-ins, the growth metrics in watches and wearables and eyeCare were quite healthy," he added

Titan's jewellery business, which rides on the Tanishq and CaratLane brands and accounts for 88 per cent of overall revenue, reported a 10 per cent rise in revenue. The company’s watches and wearables segment, which contributes eight per cent to the total revenue, reported a 12 per cent growth in revenue.

Titan had reported a 7 per cent increase in standalone net profit of Rs 786 crore for the preceding January-March quarter (Q4) of the previous financial year and declared a dividend of Rs 11 per share.

Tanishq expanded its international presence adding a new store in Dubai and Chicago in Q4, taking Titan's jewellery international footprint to 16 stores. During the quarter, Tanishq opened 11 new stores in India while Mia added 16 new stores.

Titan's shares on BSE closed 0.5 per cent lower at Rs 3,450 apiece on Friday.