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Oct 23 (Reuters) - Colgate-Palmolive's (CL.N), opens new tab Indian unit reported a decline in second quarter profit on Thursday, due to a temporary disruption to sales after the government announced sweeping cuts to goods and services taxes. The toothpaste maker's (COLG.NS), opens new tab net profit for the quarter ended September 30 came in at 3.28 billion rupees ($37.32 million), down 7.2% year-on-year, excluding the impact of a one-time tax credit last year. Sign up here. Revenue from operations for the toothpaste and shower gels maker dropped 6.3% year-on-year to 15.07 billion rupees. For further results highlights, click here. KEY CONTEXT Colgate Palmolive India, like other local consumer firms, saw transitory disruptions in the second quarter as retailers and distributors worked to clear inventory at older prices ahead of the government's implementation of goods and services tax cuts. The cuts were announced on August 15 and implemented from September 22. The tax cuts have delayed the flow of new orders for consumer firms, including larger peer Hindustan Unilever (HLL.NS), opens new tab, which also reported a decline in profit before tax and exceptional items earlier on Thursday. Colgate has said in prior calls with analysts that weak urban demand has been causing consumers to use staples such as toothpaste for longer, impacting overall volumes. It said the operating environment remained "difficult" in the second quarter. The company has been sharpening its focus on differentiated offerings that promise higher quality oral benefits to tackle these challenges, leading with a more premium portfolio. PEER COMPARISON * The mean of analyst ratings standardised to a scale of Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Sell, and Strong Sell ** The ratio of the stock's last close to analysts' mean price target; a ratio above 1 means the stock is trading above the PT JULY TO SEPTEMBER STOCK PERFORMANCE -- All data from LSEG -- $1 = 87.8950 Indian rupees Reporting by Ananta Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar
