About 50% companies saw their order book improve, 40% saw exports improve: FICCI-Dhruva research

Mumbai: Even as most companies continue to struggle as their supply chains continue to get disrupted due to Covid pandemic, glimpses of hope were seen for some companies, a survey has found. As per a survey by Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry and Dhruva Advisors many companies are seeing some improvement on several fronts. “Nearly 50 percent of the companies have reported that they have seen an increase in their order books and about 40 percent have said that their exports have increased. In the August 2020 survey, the corresponding figures were 44 percent and 30 percent, respectively,” the survey said.

Most companies, especially the medium and small ones, have suffered a lot in 2020. These companies saw their supply chains getting disrupted, their profits dwindling and their consumers vanishing. The survey saw some signs of improvement.

“Even as we see signs of improvement in performance of businesses, the impact of Covid-19 still lingers. Survey results show that businesses continue to face challenges on account of weak demand (59 percent), managing costs (54 percent) and financial liquidity (48 percent). Given this, survey participants expect both government and RBI to continue with their support measures even next year. There is a strong demand that the upcoming budget must prioritize growth-oriented measures, including a cut in direct tax rates,” the survey said.