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| Sales level: % response |
The latest Business Inflation Expectations Survey (BIES) has said that while around 46% of the firms in August 2019 reported increase in costs has been more than 3%, down from 49% in July 2019 and 55% in June 2019, and the proportion of firms perceiving significant cost increase (more than 6%) declined sharply to 23% from 29% reported in July 2019, the situation has worsened insofar as sales and profits are concerned.
Thus, says the BIES report, prepared under the directions of Prof Abhiman Das of the Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIM-A) by taking responses from over 1600 companies, “In August 2019, over three fourths of the firms (77.6%, highest ever since the inception of the survey in May 2017) in the sample reported that sales are ‘somewhat or much less than normal’. This proportion has increased significantly since June 2019.”
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| Profit margins: % response |
It adds, “The proportion of firms in the sample reporting ‘much less than normal’ profit margins has increased further to over 54% in August 2019. It may be mentioned that this proportion had crossed 50% mark for the first time in June 2019. Overall, the profit margin scenario has further deteriorated in August 2019.”
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