Context:
The NSO conducted a survey between November 2024 and January 2025 to assess capital expenditure (capex) trends for the private corporate sector over the past three years (FY22-FY24) and its intentions for FY25 and FY26. The survey covered 5,380 firms, with a response rate of 58.3% (2,172 enterprises providing data). The focus was on enterprises with ₹400 crore or more turnover in manufacturing, ₹300 crore for trade, and ₹100 crore for other sectors.
Capex Allocation for Green Technologies and Diversification
- Less than 5% of private companies in FY25 planned to allocate their capex to diversification and green technologies:
- Energy transition/conservation: 1.38%
- Diversification: 2.75%
- 10 out of 17 sectors allocated zero capex to energy transition/conservation, reflecting a lack of focus on green and future technologies in India’s private sector.
Sector-Specific Allocation
- Energy Transition/Conservation:
- The highest capex allocation was in the manufacturing sector (4.36%).
- Other sectors with allocation included water supply, sewerage, waste management (0.96%) and electricity, gas, steam (0.76%).
- Diversification:
- The highest capex for diversification was seen in agriculture, forestry, and fishing (17.31%).
- Other sectors included administrative and support service activities (14.11%) and education (5.3%).
Primary Capex Objectives in FY24-25
- Income generation: 49.6% of enterprises prioritized capex for income generation.
- Upgrade: 30.1% allocated capex for upgrades.
- Others: 16.2% of firms had unspecified or varied objectives for their investments.
Private Sector’s Capex Trends:
- The total private sector capex for FY24-25 is expected to reach ₹6.56 trillion, a post-pandemic high.
- However, there is a forecasted 25% reduction in capex outlays for FY25-26, bringing the total to ₹4.9 trillion. This decrease reflects cautious planning after strong investment levels in FY24-25.
