New Delhi, October 1
India's growth is expected to accelerate to 5.6% in the current fiscal and further to 6.5% in 2015-16, buoyed by strong investments and political certainty, rating agency Fitch said today.

“The new government has started rolling out a number of policies, which may improve the efficiency of the bureaucracy and strengthen the investment climate,” Fitch said.

Fitch expects GDP growth to pick up to 5.6% in FY15 (ending in March) and 6.5% in both FY16 and FY17, the agency said in its global economic outlook report.

“Investment is likely to rise now that political uncertainty has disappeared since the new government came to power last May,” it said.

The RBI has projected a 5.5% GDP growth for the current fiscal and 6.3% for 2015-16.

Fitch further said the expected pick-up is supported by the 5.7% GDP growth in the April-June quarter of current fiscal.

India had clocked sub-5% growth in the previous two fiscals. It grew 4.5% in 2012-13 and 4.7% in 2013-14.

Fitch said lifting GDP growth to substantially higher levels would require large productivity gains through implementation of reforms related to governance, product and labour markets, as well as reduction of infrastructure bottlenecks.

It said India will be the only BRIC nation where growth picks up in 2014 and further accelerates in 2015 owing to an expected improvement in business environment.

On the other hand, the ratings agency sees the Chinese economy witnessing a slowdown in the years to come. Fitch expects China’s growth to moderate to 7.2% in 2014, 6.8% in 2015 and 6.5% in 2016 as it gradually rebalances while seeking to contain leverage.

The agency has a stable outlook on India’s “BBB-” rating. Fitch said in the longer run, a credible low inflation environment would benefit growth by improving the investment environment.

The whole price index inflation fell to a five-year low of 3.74% while the retail inflation was at 7.8% in August. — PTI

New Delhi, October 1
Major players of the automobile sector have recorded higher sales in September ahead of the festive season.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL), India's biggest carmaker, reported a 4.6% increase in its total sales in September at 1,09,742 units as against 1,04,964 units in the same month previous year. Maruti Suzuki India (MSI) said its domestic sales during the month stood at 99,290 units, up 9.8% from 90,399 units in September previous year.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd (HMIL) also reported a marginal increase in total sales at 51,471 units in September. The company had sold 51,417 units in the same month last year, it said. It sold 35,041 units in the domestic market last month as compared to 30,601 units in September 2013, up 14.5%. During the month, Hyundai's exports declined by 21.1% to 16,430 units as against 20,816 units in the same period last year.

Japanese car-maker Honda Cars India reported a 45% increase in its domestic sales in the month at 15,015 units as against 10,354 units in the same month of the last year.

Another Japanese car maker Nissan Motor has registered a 64.02% jump in its sales in September, selling 4,145 units from 2,527 units sold during the same month of the last year.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) posted a 5% growth at 19,893 units in passenger sales. Overall M&M posted a 4% growth at 44,911 units. The company sold 15,979 commercial vehicles as against 14,709 units.

In the two-wheeler segment, Hero Motors managed to sell 1.7 lakh units in the first six days of Navratri. In September, the company sold 6 lakh units as compared to 4.7 lakh units sold in September, 2013. It says final numbers are expected to be much higher as vehicles' delivery continued till the September 30 midnight.

Bajaj Auto, however, managed to post sales growth of 9% in September 2014 (YoY) with the sales of 3.99 lakh units. TVS also posted an 18% growth in its motor cycle segment at 98,052 units, but its scooter sales jumped up 63% at 70,508 units taking its overall sales to 2.4 lakh units, a growth of 28%.

New Delhi, October 1
The recent cancellation of coal block allocations by the Supreme Court provides an opportunity for the government to reform the process of awarding coal mines in the country, S&P said today.

“Standard & Poor’s believes a transparent allocation policy will play an important role in determining the profitability and strategy of coal consuming companies,” the global credit ratings agency said.

“This, combined with a streamlined process for getting environmental clearances and approvals for land acquisition, would give these companies the confidence to invest and revive their long-pending projects,” it said in a report —Supreme Court ruling could ignite reforms in India’s coal sector.

The ruling could lead to an improved process for allocating coal mines and boosting the supply of coal in a country that faces a severe shortage of the fuel, S&P credit analyst Mehul Sukkawala said. — PTI

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