Britannia Expects Rural Demand Turnaround In Six Months
Factors like GST and Covid are behind us, and volume growth is going to boom in the next six months, said MD Varun Berry.
![<div class="paragraphs"><p>Indian FMCG major Britannia Industries. (Source: NDTV Profit)</p></div>](https://media.assettype.com/bloombergquint%2F2023-12%2Fca8834b6-4c34-4602-ae55-d9bcc140676b%2Fb6a8fee1_c8ba_4d2e_a6c2_59dae420dc7f.jpg?rect=0%2C0%2C1280%2C720&auto=format%2Ccompress&w=200)
Britannia Industries Ltd. expects volume growth to increase in the next six months, supported by a turnaround in rural demand.
"The fundamentals are all good. Factors like GST and Covid are behind us, and (volume) growth is going to boom in the next six months," Varun Berry, managing director of Britannia, told NDTV Profit at the sidelines of CII National FMCG Summit in Mumbai on Monday.
Rural sales have been slow, he noted, but he projected a "definite" turnaround over the period.
Britannia reported weak volumes for the September quarter, even as margins rose.
The second-quarter volume growth was flat, impacted by weak rural demand, which is now growing slower than urban (versus two times urban growth last year), despite distribution expansion, the management told analysts during post-earnings briefing last month.
The fast-moving consumer goods major is hopeful for a volume pickup in the second half as the pricing gap with regional players narrows, the management said.