Strong domestic and export demand drives economic growth; India's March PMI hits a 16-year high.

On March 21, HSBC Holdings released India’s manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), showing that economic activity in India remained robust in March, propelled by manufacturing growth. Business optimism improved again, supported by expectations of rising orders from marketing efforts and continued favorable macroeconomic conditions for growth—factors that bolstered Indian enterprises’ enthusiasm. India’s manufacturing PMI rose to 59.2 in March—the highest level in 16 years—from 56.9 in February. Manufacturing output accelerated to 63.5—the strongest pace in over three-and-a-half years—up from 60.7 in February. India’s services PMI edged down seasonally from 60.6 in February to 60.3 in March. Both manufacturing and services sectors remained firmly in expansionary territory. The March upturn in India’s overall business sentiment was primarily driven by manufacturing output, which lifted the manufacturing PMI by 2.3 points and pushed the headline HSBC India Composite PMI (preliminary) up from 60.6 in February to 61.3 in March. India’s PMI is compiled and published independently by HSBC—a third-party institution—and is not duplicated by India’s Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. Like most PMIs globally compiled by independent agencies, it is widely regarded as credible. Secondly, strong domestic demand and export orders continue to drive India’s economic growth. Pranjul Bhandari, HSBC’s Chief India Economist, stated in the announcement of India’s March PMI that robust domestic demand and export orders continued to buoy manufacturing this month. Overall Indian exports grew at their fastest pace in seven months. Improving economic outlook also brought positive news for employment: job creation accelerated to its fastest pace in six months. This strong demand—combined with expectations that macroeconomic conditions will continue supporting growth—led businesses to raise their one-year outlook for optimism this month. Firms also ramped up hiring at their strongest pace since September 2023. Owing to robust demand, investment and supply growth lagged behind demand, resulting in elevated price pressures across the economy this month—adding to inflationary pressures—and causing both input and output costs to rise. Indian service-sector firms’ input costs rose at their fastest pace in seven months, while service charges surged to their largest increase since July 2017. Meanwhile, sales prices for both manufacturers and service providers rose at their highest rate in over five months. Although manufacturers’ month-on-month output price growth hit its lowest level in over a year, persistent sequential price increases meant input cost growth still outpaced that of February. Because input prices rose faster than output prices this month, part of the increased input cost could not be fully passed on to customers—leading to a decline in aggregate profit margins. This suggests that India’s overall inflation may retain some stickiness amid vigorous demand, thereby reducing the Reserve Bank of India’s near-term incentive to cut interest rates. Thirdly, India’s GDP growth for FY24 is likely to approach 8%, and for FY25 it is projected at 7%. According to India’s Economic Times on March 22, a private survey released Thursday showed that business activity in India rose to an eight-month high in March—boosted by manufacturing—thus ending fiscal year 2024 on a strong note.

A 2,000-fold surge: An Indian IT giant built on the outsourcing industry.

At that time, the company seized the opportunity presented by the rapid development of the software industry, leveraging India’s low-cost talent advantage to secure high-value IT outsourcing contracts from developed markets such as Europe and the United States. These projects were then executed and delivered domestically in India. Under the internet’s borderless infrastructure, this model proved viable—spurring rapid growth across India’s entire IT outsourcing sector. The Global Delivery Model (GDM) enables seamless, round-the-clock project execution across time zones worldwide. GDM embodies this philosophy perfectly—eliminating geographical and temporal constraints by integrating global resources to deliver the most efficient IT services to clients. Under this model, large-scale software projects—traditionally handled end-to-end by a single firm—are broken down into smaller, more manageable modules and assigned to engineers dispersed across the globe according to specific requirements. A project is first segmented into onshore (near the client), nearshore (in neighboring or nearby time zones), and offshore (distant, typically lower-cost locations) components. Engineers located around the world then work continuously—24 hours a day—to complete these tasks until final delivery. This approach balances efficiency and cost control. Intriguingly, India’s 12-hour time difference with Silicon Valley enables truly seamless handover and collaboration. Under this model, the company grew from an initial $250 seed capital into an Indian software outsourcing giant generating over $10 billion in annual revenue. Infosys, listed on the Indian stock exchange in 1993, has delivered nearly a 2,000-fold return on a price-adjusted basis over its 30-year history. Since its 1999 listing on NASDAQ, its stock has gained nearly 39-fold. Infosys’s growth mirrors India’s robust economic expansion—but crucially, its revenue is predominantly sourced from global markets. Thus, its success cannot be attributed solely to India’s domestic economic development; rather, it reflects Infosys’s own global market penetration and ability to capture international industry demand. Its current stature stems directly from its globally competitive capabilities. Compared with peers in India’s outsourcing industry, Infosys derives the highest share of its revenue from developed markets in Europe and North America. India’s software outsourcing industry advantages are clearly reflected in financial statements: even today, when compared with U.S.-based outsourcing firms such as Accenture and Cognizant, Indian companies consistently report higher profit margins. Both Infosys and TCS—the industry leader (Tata Consultancy Services)—maintain net profit margins above 20%, whereas Accenture’s margin stands at only about 15%. Even Wipro—the relatively weakest performer among major Indian outsourcers—achieves a higher margin than Accenture. Low labor compensation is indeed a key component of this cost advantage, and these firms enjoy distinct advantages in recruiting talent within India. That said, their higher profitability also stems from comparatively lower marketing expenditures. Relative to Western consulting giants like Accenture, Indian outsourcing firms occupy a comparatively lower tier in the value chain—resulting in fewer high-end engagements and greater dependence on large IT platform vendors. Consequently, they have invested less in building their own brand equity.

India's Escorts Kubota posts rise in adjusted quarterly profit on stronger demand

Aug 3, 2026

Escorts Kubota reported a rise in adjusted Q1 profit driven by higher tractor sales, though operating margins fell due to increased raw material costs. Revenue climbed 28% to 31.79 billion rupees supported by strong volume growth.

reuters

2026-08-03

India's Escorts Kubota posts rise in adjusted quarterly profit on stronger demand

India's Escorts Kubota posts rise in adjusted quarterly profit on stronger demand

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