ORG-MARG study says rural market is growing
New Delhi: The ORG-MARG study on the FMCG sector has found that Indian rural consumers have turned active buyers of Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) products, while urban consumers seem more focussed on convenience products.

Contrary to the common belief that the rural sector has been stagnating, the ORG study has shown that primarily the rural segment drove growth in FMCGs in 2000. The factors that led to the growth include higher average household income in rural and urban areas, along with increased media penetration and dealer presence. Thus, while growth in urban areas has more than doubled from 5.9 per cent in 1999 to 11.9 per cent in 2000, the growth in rural markets too has risen from 4.5 per cent to 7.8 per cent.

The study says that distribution, volumes and price have been key growth drivers in the FMCG sector last year. FMCGs saw an 8 per cent value growth over 1999. In absolute value terms, the category clocked in sales of Rs 4,27,000 crore in 2000, against the previous year's Rs 3,96,000 crore. Per capita consumption also rose from Rs 394 in 1999 to Rs 415 in 2000.

Lifestyle and convenience-oriented products have influenced growth in the overall FMCG segment, but packaged grocery, lighting and household cares are three areas, which ranked low, in the consumer's shopping list. The biggest gainers were cooking medium, hair-care and personal care products for women. Food product registered a marginal increase from 7.1 per cent in 1999 to 8.1 per cent last year.
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