RBI Data Shows Listed Private Companies’ Sales Growth Accelerated to 19.4% in Q1 FY27

The Reserve Bank of India has released fresh data on the performance of India’s listed private corporate sector for the first quarter of 2026-27, showing a sharp acceleration in sales growth across non-financial companies and stronger operating profit growth in manufacturing, information technology and non-IT services.

The August 27, 2026 release is based on abridged quarterly financial results of 3,247 listed non-government non-financial companies. RBI has also provided comparable data for Q4 of 2025-26 and Q1 of 2025-26, allowing both sequential and year-on-year comparison.

Aggregate sales growth rises to 19.4%

At the aggregate level, sales of listed private non-financial companies grew 19.4% year-on-year in Q1 FY27, up from 13.9% in the previous quarter. The acceleration was broad-based, though the pace differed across manufacturing, IT and non-IT services.

Among 1,827 listed private manufacturing companies, sales expanded 21.4% year-on-year, compared with 14.5% in the previous quarter. RBI said the acceleration was driven mainly by automobiles, petroleum and electrical machinery industries.

Information technology companies also recorded stronger growth, with sales rising 14.8% year-on-year from 9.9% in the previous quarter. Non-IT services companies posted 19.7% sales growth, broadly maintaining the strong 20.3% pace recorded in the preceding quarter. RBI identified wholesale and retail trade as an important contributor to non-IT services growth.

Input costs rose sharply, but margins improved

The operating environment was not uniformly favourable. RBI reported that raw-material expenses of manufacturing companies increased 27.5% year-on-year during Q1 FY27 amid global supply-chain disruptions. Even so, the raw-material-to-sales ratio eased marginally to 58.1% from 58.5% in the previous quarter.

Staff costs also increased across the major sectors. Manufacturing companies reported 12.4% growth in staff costs, while IT and non-IT services companies recorded increases of 7.6% and 11.2%, respectively. The staff-cost-to-sales ratio increased to 5.5% for manufacturing and 10.1% for non-IT services, while the ratio declined sequentially for IT companies.

Operating profit growth strengthens across sectors

Despite higher input expenses, operating profit growth improved materially. Manufacturing companies reported 21.3% year-on-year operating profit growth, more than double the 9.4% growth recorded in the previous quarter.

IT companies recorded 19.9% operating profit growth, while non-IT services companies posted 12.7%. RBI also said operating profit margins improved sequentially across all major sectors during Q1 FY27.

For finance professionals, this combination is notable because it suggests that stronger sales growth and improved operating leverage were sufficient, at the aggregate level, to offset substantial increases in raw-material and staff costs.

Debt-servicing indicators also improve

RBI’s release also tracks interest coverage, an important measure of debt-servicing capacity. The interest coverage ratio of manufacturing companies improved to 10.2 in Q1 FY27 as gross profits rose faster sequentially than interest expenses.

For non-IT services companies, the interest coverage ratio increased to 2.6. RBI said the ratio for IT firms remained at an elevated level. In its explanatory note, RBI defines interest coverage ratio as earnings before interest and tax divided by interest expenses, and notes that a minimum value of 1 is necessary for a company to remain viable on this measure.

What CAs and finance teams should take from the data

The RBI dataset is useful for benchmarking quarterly company performance against broader sector trends. Finance teams reviewing Q1 results can compare their own sales growth, input-cost pressure, staff-cost ratios, operating margins and interest coverage with the directional trends reported by RBI.

For auditors and Chartered Accountants, the sharp rise in manufacturing raw-material expenses alongside stronger operating profit growth may warrant closer company-specific analysis of pricing, inventory, procurement and margin movements rather than relying on headline revenue growth alone.

The improvement in interest coverage also provides a useful sector-level reference point when assessing leverage and debt-servicing capacity, although company-level conclusions must still be based on the entity’s own financial position, cash flows and borrowing profile.

Important scope caveat

RBI has cautioned that the coverage of companies varies across quarters depending on when companies declare their results. The central bank said this variation is not expected to materially alter the aggregate position. The underlying database and detailed tables provide further breakdowns by sector, company size and industry.

Useful official links

Performance of Private Corporate Business Sector during Q1:2026-27

Key takeaway

RBI’s latest Q1 FY27 corporate-sector data points to faster revenue growth, improved operating profitability and stronger debt-servicing indicators across major listed private non-financial sectors, even as manufacturing companies faced a steep rise in raw-material expenses.