The financial year 2016-17 was an eventful year for the Indian Industry. The Indian economy faced various challenges that affected the pace of economic growth. The uncertainty in the global market affected the exports. The commodity prices took a hit due to strengthening of dollar and weakening of rupee. The changes offered in the H-1B visa is expected to impact the Indian outsourcing firms. Despite all these challenges, we had a successful year. With your effort and support, we could grow our business and offer value to our customer both in India and internationally. I take this opportunity to thank all members of LNJ Bhilwara Group.
We, at LNJ Bhilwara have comprehensively diversified into yarns, textile fabrics and ready-made garments, steel, graphite electrodes, and power generation plants and consulting. We have been a reliable partner and contributor to India’s successful textile journey since 1960. Now, the Indian textile sector contributes 11 per cent of total exports. A labour intensive industry, it employs about 45 million workers directly and 60 million indirectly thereby making the textile industry the mainstay for millions of people in the country after agriculture. India’s overall textile exports during 2015-16 financial year stood at US$ 40 billion. The textile industry contributes approximately 5 per cent to India’s gross domestic product (GDP), and 14 per cent to overall Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
India has emerged as the fastest growing major economy in the world as per the Central Statistics Organization and IMF (International Monetary Fund.) IMF in its bi-annual World Economic Outlook has retained India’s GDP growth at 7.2% for 2017-18, against 7.1% the previous year. The inflation is at 3.7% and favorable monsoon and lower interest rate would help the overall business scenario in India.
If we specifically look at the textile industry, it is expected to reach around US$ 223 billion by 2021 from current estimate of around US $108 billion. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision ‘Make in India’ certainly holds true for the textile industry and numerous efforts are being made in that direction. The first ever global business to business (B2B) textile showcase event, Textiles India 2017, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, was inaugurated by Shri Narendra Modi on June 30, 2017. This was an opportunity for Indian manufacturers and exporters to meet buyers and importers from all over the world. An inspiring experience for the Indian textile industry.
There is an immense opportunity for our colleagues at HEG Ltd. too. According to the Global Graphite Electrodes Market 2016-2020 report, graphite electrodes market is poised to grow at a CAGR of 10.16 per cent during the period, 2016-2020.
The infrastructure and construction sector accounts for more than 51.53 per cent of the world steel consumption and it is expected to post a CAGR of 7.6 per cent till 2020. Both, machinery and automotive industries are expected to grow at a higher rate during the forecast period, which will see a constant increase in demand for steel, thereby fuelling the growth of graphite electrodes.
As a team we should be ready to face these challenges and achieve our goals. We will continue our effort to launch many new products and services to meet the expectation of our customer.
Focus area: Transparent Financial Transactions
I would urge all of you to focus on the most crucial area, transparent financial transactions. This can only happen if we set up a proper system and processes to ensure that all financial dealings are recorded and audited timely.
This is the only way to increase the overall efficiency and further strengthen our leadership position in the years to come. It will help us as a team to sail through the most rapidly changing and evolving economic times.
With Best Wishes,
Ravi Jhunjhunwala