Manufacturing Sales Surge 14.5% in Q4 FY26, Driven by Autos and Metals
Quick Look
- Listed private manufacturing companies in India saw sales jump 14.5% in Q4 FY26, led by automobiles, electrical machinery, and non-ferrous metals.
- Overall non-financial companies grew sales by 13.9%.
- Input cost pressure rose due to higher raw material expenses, while staff costs moderated.
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Why It Matters
The Reserve Bank of India released data on the performance of the private corporate business sector for Q4 FY26. Manufacturing companies saw significant sales expansion, while the services sector experienced a moderation in operating profit margins.
Manufacturing companies saw sales jump 14.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025-26. Automobiles, electrical machinery, and non-ferrous metals led this growth. Overall, listed private non-financial companies achieved double-digit sales growth. Raw material expenses increased, indicating input cost pressure. Staff costs for manufacturing companies moderated. Services sector companies experienced a moderation in operating profit margins.
Mumbai: Sales of over 1,800 listed private manufacturing companies expanded by 14.5 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2025-26, mainly driven by automobiles, electrical machinery and non-ferrous metals industries, according to RBI data released on Tuesday.
At the aggregate level, listed private non-financial companies continued to record a double-digit sales growth of 13.9 per cent during the January-March period of 2025-26, up from 10.1 per cent in the previous quarter.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released the data on the performance of the private corporate business sector during the fourth quarter of 2025-26, drawn from abridged quarterly financial results of 3,266 listed non-government non-financial companies.
"Sales of 1,817 listed private manufacturing companies expanded by 14.5 per cent (y-o-y) during Q4:2025-26, as compared to 11.4 per cent in the previous quarter," the RBI said.
This acceleration was mainly driven by automobiles, electrical machinery and non-ferrous metals industries, it added.
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RBI further said sales growth of Information Technology (IT) companies continued to improve further to 9.9 per cent YoY during Q4 of 2025-26 from 8.8 per cent in the previous quarter.
On the other hand, expansion in sales growth of non-IT services companies improved substantially to 20.3 per cent from the previous quarter, mainly driven by the wholesale and retail trade industry.
RBI also said that with global uncertainties, raw material expenses of manufacturing companies rose substantially by 18.3 per cent YoY during Q4FY26.
Raw material to sales ratio also increased to 58.5 per cent during the January-March quarter from 57.5 per cent in the previous quarter, indicating input cost pressure.
The staff cost growth of manufacturing companies moderated to 9.8 per cent YoY during Q4FY26, compared to the previous quarter.
Within the services sector, the staff cost growth for non-IT services companies rose at a higher pace, while it remained broadly similar for IT companies during the fourth quarter as compared to the previous quarter.
On a sequential basis, the operating profit margin of manufacturing companies remained stable, while it moderated for services sector companies during the January-March period of the last fiscal.
Open Questions
- Will input cost pressures continue to affect manufacturing?
- How will moderated services sector margins impact future growth?
