Festive Season Spending Estimated to Touch Rs 14 Lakh Crore
Clothing, cars, and electronics lead India’s festive shopping boom
Chennai: Consumption spending during the festive season is expected to be in the range of Rs 12 lakh crore to Rs 14 lakh crore. Bulk of this spending will be made on clothing, marriages, electronics and automobiles, finds a report by Bank of Baroda.
Optimism stemming from the GST reforms and a good monsoon is expected to spur festival spending. The report, however, has not included daily consumption goods like food items and other FMCG products in the spending estimate.
Clothing and footwear are expected to be the largest segments with a possible expenditure of Rs 2,80,000 to Rs 3,00,000 crore. With the increase in online channels, including e-commerce, the readymade garment business has grown rapidly in both urban as well as Tier-II and Tier-III cities, and this is likely to translate into increased festive spending. At the same time, an increase in the proportion of the working-age population as well as an aspiring middle class is also likely to impact consumers’ spending in the festive period.
On the back of the bumper announcement through the GST reforms, the automobile sector is expected to witness record sales in the festive season with an estimated sale of Rs 1,50,000 to Rs 2,00,000 crore. Both passenger vehicles and two-wheelers are expected to drive sales in Q3 FY26. The automakers and dealers have already announced the new prices, incorporating lower rates.
Even as the GST rates under the smartphone and laptop categories have been kept at a default rate of 18 per cent, the ongoing sale, especially on the e-commerce platforms, is expected to fuel sales of electronics in the range of Rs 1,00,000 - Rs 1,20,000 crore.
White goods comprising televisions, washing machines, refrigerators and AC are also purchased by households during the festive period. Based on past trends and market developments and using the IIP production to extrapolate the sales in each of these categories, the study assumes 10 per cent growth in sales this year to an estimated Rs 35,000-40,000 crore.
Sweets normally witness 70 per cent of the sales during the festive/wedding season. The sweets consumed by households alone during the Oct-Dec’25 period could see sales of around Rs. 40,000-45,000 crore. Another major head where a significant amount of spending is noted in the festive season is under corporate gifting and events. The study expects spending under this segment to range between Rs 15,000-20,000 crore.
As the festive season begins, travel through airlines, railways, and cabs also picks up momentum. Travel will account for 5 per cent of the total spending, amounting to range between Rs. 60,000- 70,000 crore. A bigger chunk of this -66-67 per cent- will be on account of air travel, primarily due to higher air fares.
The festive cheer is expected to drive the dine–in and online meal orders higher. The online quick commerce platforms also note a surge in orders during this period. This will result in an estimated sale of Rs. 65,000-75,000 crores across platforms.
The festive period in India also marks the start of the auspicious period of marriages, which is another added boost to consumption. Estimates suggest that on average, around one crore marriages take place in India every year. Around 60 per cent of these marriages take place in the Oct-Dec period. Based on this, an estimated sale of Rs. 5,000-10,000 crore is expected during this period.
