By Parikshit Luthra
ITC chairman and managing director Sanjiv Puri believes domestic economy is fairly resilient today, but exports remain a challenge. While acknowledging that not all sectors are performing equally well, Puri emphasised the country’s ability to withstand pressures, attributing it to the spirit of enterprise, the resilience of its people, and strategic policy interventions.
Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Puri said, “The domestic economy is fairly resilient, of course, not all pockets are doing all as well. And part of the impact is also because of the challenges that we are facing with respect to exports and some of the after effects of inflation.”
Puri added, “Large parts of the world are not doing well, you spoke about China and I think the concerns are certainly not in that geography alone, it is beyond that. The western world is not facing great growth, there are the risk of recessions and so on, so forth and that’s what’s impacting our exports.”
Despite the export hurdles, Puri pointed out a shining star in the Indian economy’s performance. “Q2 GDP numbers are a testament to how well the economy is doing and I think all that is a result of, of course, the spirit of enterprise in India, the resilience of people, but also, I think, enabled by a lot of very timely and purposeful policy interventions over several years. ”
Puri is hopeful about India becoming a big economic player. He says, ” There’s no doubt in my mind that India is going to emerge as a global economic powerhouse. It’s already the fifth largest economy, and by before the end of this decade, it should be the third.”
Addressing the issue of inflation, Puri acknowledged that while India has managed inflation relatively well now compared to the past, it is not entirely immune to global dynamics.
He noted that the country is better placed than many others but has not escaped the impact of higher pricing pressures, partly influenced by external factors and the ongoing climate emergency.
Puri commented on the current status of inflation, stating, “Now we are seeing a situation where commodities are cooling off, but they are still above what they were pre-COVID. A lot of it is related to external factors and the climate emergency, which is also causing its own bit of inflation.”