Exporting Indian leather SMEs fare best
A new study suggests that Indian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that export their goods fare better than those that sell solely in the domestic market.
The Credit Rating and Information Services of India Ltd (CRISIL) study shows that a larger proportion of exporting SMEs reported having operating profit margins of more than 10% compared with their non-exporting counterparts.
The study involved 1,800 SMEs belonging to four export-oriented sectors: leather, textiles, engineering and agricultural and processed foods.
In the leather segment, more exporting SMEs had OPMs of more than 5% than leather SMEs with a domestic focus.
Yogesh Dixit, director of SME ratings at CRISIL, said: "The government and policymakers need to focus upon resolving infrastructural bottlenecks, facilitating access to export market for enterprises and developing an export-oriented mindset.
"These initiatives will make the businesses more efficient and productive, thereby helping SMEs compete better in the international market on the strength of competitive pricing, better quality and timely delivery.
"The special manufacturing zones being planned in various parts of the country could give fillip to manufacturing activity with an export orientation and promote high-value exports."
