Sales of listed private manufacturing companies rise by 14.5% in Q4FY26: RBI

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in its latest data has said that sales of more than 1,800 listed private manufacturing companies expanded by 14.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025-26 (Q4FY26) as compared to 11.4% in the previous quarter, mainly led by automobiles, electrical machinery and non-ferrous metals industries.

According to it, at the aggregate level, listed private non-financial companies continued to record a double-digit sales growth of 13.9% during the Q4FY26, up from 10.1% in the previous quarter.

Besides, it said that sales growth of Information Technology (IT) companies continued to improve further to 9.9% YoY during Q4 of FY26 from 8.8% in the previous quarter. On the other hand, expansion in sales growth of non-IT services companies improved substantially to 20.3% from the previous quarter, mainly driven by the wholesale and retail trade industry.

During Q4FY26, the operating profit rose 9.4% YoY, slightly moderated from 11.8% growth in the previous quarter, led by uptick in raw material costs. The Automobile companies drove the large part of sales growth, followed by Defence, FMCG and Energy companies.

At the company specific level, Maruti Suzuki and M&M posted record revenue growth above ₹50,000 crore, led by strong volume growth, but profitability took hit owing to high input costs. Besides this, defence companies with huge order books are struggling to convert it into the topline.

The comping quarter is expected to show slight dip in operating profits owing to high uncertainty in the Middle East and elevated crude oil prices. Despite this, the listed manufacturing companies are committed to ₹10.5 trillion in capital expenditure for FY26. Additionally, abating currency pressures due to reduced volatility in the war could improve sentiment for domestic manufacturing companies.