Households are spending more on discretionary items: Economic Survey

The data from the NSO shows the share of food and beverages has reduced from 33.2 per cent of private consumption in 2011-12 to 30 per cent in 2017-18 - a reduction of over three percentage points

Indians are increasingly spending more on discretionary items and less on basic necessities such as food, according to the Economic Survey for 2018-19. 

Private consumption forms the biggest chunk in the gross domestic product (GDP) basket. Changes in consumption pattern are crucial to the growth dynamics of various sectors of the economy. 

The last two quarters of 2018-19 saw growth slowing in private consumption — contracted auto sales and subdued FMCG sales — pushing down economic growth to the lowest in 20 quarters. Private final consumption expenditure, the way it is defined in national income accounts, forms nearly