Falling rupee to make PCs, TVs, cars, imported food & liquor, foreign travel ...

“We will be left with no other option, but to increase prices if this slide continues. We are going to review our car prices at the end of this month. In normal market conditions, you can take decision on price rise much faster. But when the market is not doing well, it is not only about how the rupee is moving.. we also have to see how the competition is reacting,” said Sandeep Singh, DMD and COO, Toyota Kirloskar. Similar sentiments were echoed by other car makers. “Car companies are left with no choice but to increase prices as they are not able to absorb the impact. The affect on demand depends on the quantum of price increase on the product .

We do not expect any immediate impact on demand by the small price hike on Amaze and CR-V which came into effect from June 1,” said Jnaneswar Sen of Honda Siel Cars India Ltd. A Hyundai Motor India executive said margins of car companies will be under pressure in the medium term. “Any increase of input costs may lead to a further drop in already stagnating demand. Compounded with the depressed market conditions, margins also will be under squeeze in the medium term,” said R Sethuraman, director (finanace corporate affairs) at Hyundai.

But its not just big ticket items like cars, TVs and laptops that could get expensive. Retail chains Future Group and Spencer’s said imported chocolates and spreads such as Ferrero Rocher, Nuttela, Orion Choco Pie, Snickers, Skippy peanut butter and American Garden will also see a jump in prices, once the current stock finishes in a few weeks time. Spencer’s Retail chief executive Mohit Kampani said for every 1% the rupee devalues, the end-price on imported food goes up by 3-4%. For imported liquor, the impact is 6% and 2-3% for imported homeware such as crockery, plastic products and home convenience products. “The net impact on consumer prices could be as high as 20-25% for imported products,” Kampani said. Sales of imported products, which were growing upwards of 20%, may sober down, he said. Foreign travel, too, has become more expensive.

“The rupee’s free fall has pushed up the cost of tour packages by 5% to 8% over the last month’s rates. Travel to regions like the UK, the US or Europe would cost around 8% more, affecting the overall budget of a traveller,” says Sunil Hasija, executive director, TUI India. Given the increase in cost of tour packages, travellers are shortening their holidays by a day or two or are rethinking their hotel options. Many tourists are opting for short haul destinations such as Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong over long haul ones to offset the increase in cost.

Some travel companies insulate their customers from fluctuations in package costs due to currency pressures as they book at forward market rates to offset any actual fluctuation at the time of holiday.

Falling rupee to make PCs, TVs, cars, imported food & liquor, foreign travel ...