Ratings agency ICRA forecasts a significant moderation in Corporate India’s aggregate revenue growth for Q2 FY27, projecting a rise of 13-15% compared to the 21.3% growth recorded in Q1, alongside a 1 to 1.5 percentage point drop in operating profit margins. The slowdown highlights a widening divide between domestic consumption sectors, such as automobiles, retail, and consumer durables, and stress-ridden, export-dependent industries like IT, textiles, and cut-and-polished diamonds facing soft international demand. Profitability across energy-intensive, FMCG, aviation, and cement sectors is expected to remain constrained due to elevated crude oil, fuel, freight, and packaging costs resulting from the ongoing West Asia conflict and rupee depreciation. In contrast, upstream oil producers, mining firms, telecom operators, and utilities are projected to maintain resilient margins due to strong realisations and pricing power. On the international trade front, industry leaders and government representatives at a PHDCCI interactive session urged businesses to leverage the newly signed India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement. The bilateral pact provides duty-free market access for 100% of Indian exports, offering immediate growth opportunities for labor-intensive sectors such as apparel, leather, footwear, engineering goods, and processed foods, while encouraging deep economic cooperation in housing, smart cities, infrastructure, water, and food security.