Real estate, travel and tourism blues hit India's consumption story

Experts say despite the revival in the sales of essential goods, several sectors are continuing to drag private consumption down.

India’s Rs 4.5-trillion fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector was one of the first to bounce back from the lockdown induced blues, reporting a year-on-year (YoY) growth in the October-December quarter last year. That said, the overall consumption figures continue to remain depressed.

The FMCG market, which includes daily consumables like branded atta, hand sanitizers, edible oils, shampoos, razors, and so on, recorded 7.3 per cent value growth during the period, while the smartphone market grew by 21 per cent. Manufacturers claim that consumer durable sales, too, picked up due to last year’s festive buying, and grew by low double digits. 

However, the