| | AUGUST 20249Increasing disposable incomes, due to the proposed tax relief for the middle class, would result in increased discretionary spending. This, coupled with a focus on rural development and employment generation, could help bring consumption up and bring some relief to FMCG companies and retailers who are witnessing flat sales. "Measures are aimed at improving consumer spends by increasing disposable income, says Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO of Marico".In particular, focus on infrastructure and employment generation will go a long way in driving demand for FMCG products", Mayank Shah, Vice President, Parle Products, said.According to Aasif Malbari, the CFO of Godrej Consumer Products, initiatives that drive rural development can create the demand in those areas and indirectly catalyze consumption in non-metro areas. According to a study by Bizom, the top 75 cities with a population of more than 500,000 contribute 40 percent of FMCG revenue, while the rest comes from rural areas.The FMCG stocks were supported by the announcements in the Budget, and on BSE, while the FMCG index gained 2.5 percent, it was the biggest gainer among all sectoral indices.Inflation, heatwaves, and fewer wedding dates have all worked against retailers this past quarter, though these factors are likely to turn around in the coming months. Ramesh Kalyanaraman, executive director at Kalyan Jewellers, said: "The new tax regime emphasizes higher disposable income in the hands of all, which bodes well for demand in jewellery".Country CFO, Ikea India, Murali Iyer, said that hopefully, all these measures of tax relief would benefit retail markets."The skilling agenda of the Budget should result in the creation of jobs. Incentives to employers who employ should help in arresting unemployment", said Rajeev Singh, partner at Deloitte Asia Pacific. DEFENCE BUDGET 2024: FM NIRMALA SITHARAMAN APPORTIONS RS 6.21 LAKH CROREIN FOCUS
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