Manufacturing companies record lower sales growth in Q3: RBI data

Listed manufacturing companies recorded lower sales growth of 10.6 per cent in the December quarter of the current fiscal compared to 20.9 per cent in the previous quarter, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday.

The moderation in the manufacturing companies was broad-based across the industries, except for cement.

Over all, sales growth of listed private non-financial companies moderated to 12.7 per cent in third quarter of 2022-23 from 22.6 per cent in the previous July-September period.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has released data on the performance of the private corporate sector during the third quarter of 2022-23 drawn from abridged quarterly financial results of 2,779 listed non-government non-financial companies.

However, Information technology (IT) companies remained on high growth trajectory and recorded 19.4 per cent rise in sales. Also, revenue growth for non-IT services companies was supported by steady performance in trade, transport and telecommunication sectors.

"Manufacturing companies' expenses on raw materials moderated marginally in line with lower sales growth and tempered prices for some inputs," the RBI said.

Further, the central bank said operating profit of manufacturing companies contracted on an annual basis for the second consecutive quarter in the December. It, however, expanded for both IT and non-IT services companies.