Mumbai: Blue Star, the central air-conditioning and commercial refrigeration major, has reported a total income of Rs 306.51 crore for the half year ended 30 September 2003, a growth of 18 per cent in comparison with the same period last year.

The company''s profit before extraordinary items and taxation grew by 37 per cent to Rs 14.47 crore while the net profit climbed to Rs 8.22 crore.

With favourable macroeconomic conditions, new orders worth Rs 398 crore have been booked by the company for the half year ended September 2003, which represents a growth of 40 per cent.

Says Blue Star chairman and CEO Ashok M Advani: "As I have stated earlier, we are back on the growth path, and I am optimistic about the outlook for this financial year."