June quarter results: Corporate India's growth ambitions hit a fresh bump

Infrastructure and construction-related sectors were the bright spots during the quarter

Corporate India’s growth ambitions hit a fresh bump in the April-June 2017 quarter. Consumption growth again took a knock after showing a mild recovery during the March 2017 quarter. The top line growth for consumer goods makers such as ITC, Hindustan Unilever and Asian Paints was the lowest in the past five quarters, barring the post-demonetisation lows in the December 2016 quarter, while net profit growth was the lowest in the past three years. Automakers did even worse and reported year-on-year decline in revenues and profits, as consumer delayed purchases on account of the goods and services tax (GST) during