AgriNation News Network

New Delhi. 25 Jan 2018

Agrochemical firms hope for a better performance in the third quarter of this financial year than in the previous two quarters due to good rainfall ahead of the rabi season and a significant improvement in overall crop acreage across the country.
Introduction of new products by agrochemical companies is expected to further boost sales, said industry executives and sectoral experts. The previous two quarters were marred by destocking due to the goods and services tax (GST) and uneven rainfall in many parts of the country.
Ratings agency ICRA has said that major agrochemical companies are expected to report 11-12% year-on year revenue growth for the October-December period, after a growth of 1.1% and 7.4% in the first and second quarters, respectively.
“Weak growth in the first quarter of 2017-18 was on account of channel destocking undertaken due to impending implementation of GST,” said K Ravichandran, senior VP, ICRA. “While growth was seen in Q2 due to a healthy offtake by farmers during the kharif season, it also witnessed an uneven distribution of rainfall and a marginal decline in sowing.”