more-inWhile the rebound in GDP growth in the second quarter can act as a ‘confidence booster’ for the economy, the slowdown in the services sector, including finance, transport and hotels, as well as in agriculture is cause for concern, according to industry bodies and consultants. “We are, however, still experiencing slowdown in the services sector including finance, transport and hotels.”GST effect on servicesPossible causes for the slowdown include the larger working capital requirements faced by the services sector (especially export-oriented ones) and teething process issues post-GST implementation, he said. We will need to wait for Q3 and Q4 GDP numbers to be able to comment on this more conclusively,” he added. Rawat said, “... agriculture remains an area of concern with a mere 1.7% in the second quarter against 2.3% in the previous quarter. Pankaj Patel, president, FICCI, said, “The monetary policy announcement next week will be a perfect timing to give another shot to boost the sentiment.

Source: The Hindu November 30, 2017 16:40 UTC