October 2019 Edition Apparel October 2019 issue | Page 83

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS
at only about five per cent—the lowest in the past
six years—while the overall GDP growth of 6.8
per cent for 2018–19 has been the lowest in the
last five years.
This gradual decline can be seen across
sectors and industries, some of which are
suffering more than the others. The Indian
automobile sector is a prime example, which,
despite being the fourth largest in the world, has
been struggling for the last ten months, mainly
due to declining demand and consequently
lacklustre sales. In fact, economic activity across
the eight core sectors has fallen from a growth
of 7.3 per cent in August 2018 to 2.1 per cent
in August 2019. Similarly, sectors such as real
estate and banking have also faced their fair
share of challenges during the past year.
Along with all these setbacks, India is also
struggling to retain consumer confidence amid
the daily terrors of the United States (US)-China
trade war. Like many other nations, the ripple
effect of the war has been the destabilisation
of stock markets and loss of confidence in the
WHILE INDIA WAS FAIRLY
INSULATED FROM THE
GLOBAL RECESSION IN
2009, THAT MAY NOT BE
THE CASE TODAY.
future of the American consumer base, which has
a contagious effect on other regions. However,
it is important to note that these are early days.
In economic parlance, a recession is usually
acknowledged when an economy records two
consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth.
That is not where we are right now. This is only a
contraction but it can very well be an indicator for
what is waiting for us down the horizon.
But even a slowdown has its consequences.
While India was fairly insulated from the global
recession in 2009, that may not be the case
today. The last ten years have witnessed the
Indian economy become increasingly intertwined
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