India's consumer goods sales hit over one-year low

NEW DELHI, Aug 08 (Reuters): Indian consumer products' sales slowed sharply to a more-than-one-year low from April to June due to softening demand for personal care products and packaged wheat flour, especially in urban areas, market researcher NielsenIQ said on Thursday.

The overall sales volume growth slowed to 3.8 per cent in the second quarter, compared with growth rates of 6.4 per cent to 8.6 per cent in the past four quarters, "largely due to macroeconomic headwinds," NielsenIQ said, without detailing the factors.

India's retail inflation hovered around 5 per cent in the quarter, mostly due to high food prices, forcing consumers in the world's most populous country to cut back wherever possible to make ends meet.

The sales volume growth in rural areas slowed to 5.2 per cent, from 7.6 per cent in the previous quarter, but fared better than urban markets.