Markets wear deserted look, retail sales down by 40%

Sanjeev Sharma

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 16

Retail markets are wearing a gloomy look just before Diwali with traders claiming that lower footfalls have resulted in a 40% drop in sales in comparison to last year.

Traders body CAIT said with just three days to go for Diwali, markets across the country are gloomy and wear a deserted look. The lack of festivity and less footfalls of the consumers has resulted in a 40% drop in sales as compared to last year.

The CAIT said acute cash shortage is the main reason for the slowdown and lower footfalls of the consumers in the markets. Consumers are more inclined to buy only essential commodities and skipping discretionary items because of cash shortage in their pockets.

While investments stuck in real estate and gold have not yielded good returns leading to money being blocked and the slowdown is further multiplied by glitches in GST turning to be a situation of chaos in the markets all over the country, the CAIT said.

Traders have also alleged that e-commerce portals were indulging in unfair business practices by offering unrealistic discounts, restraining consumers to go to markets.

According to a report by Motilal Oswal Securities on consumer sentiment in central India, markets in central India are cash-dependent and with curbs on cash post-demonetisation, volume growth had suffered.

The report said with the waning of the demonetisation blues now, there has been heavy disruption in the wholesale channel post-GST rollout. Staples demand has suffered, but travel and luxury goods sales have been affected even more, it added.