Asian Paints Braces for Sluggish Growth Amid Weak Demand, Monsoon Impact

Asian Paints, India’s largest paint manufacturer, has cautioned about muted near-term growth due to subdued demand and challenging market conditions. CEO Amit Syngle, in the company’s post-earnings call, said the company is projecting single-digit volume and value growth, calling it a “realistic” expectation given the current business environment.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2025, Asian Paints reported a 4.2% volume growth in its decorative and industrial paints segments combined, down from 7.4% in the same quarter last year. Sequentially, there was a mild improvement in domestic decorative volumes at 3.9%, up from 1.8% in Q4FY25 and 1.6% in Q3FY25.

However, June ended weak due to early and intense monsoons, and demand in July has remained soft. “Q2 so far is tracking similar to Q1—nothing very adverse, but nothing exciting either,” Syngle remarked. He added that October may be particularly affected due to fewer retailing days as Diwali arrives earlier this year, possibly pushing festive demand into September—“provided the rains don’t disrupt it further.”

Regionally, Northwest and Eastern India have outperformed, while Southern states lag. Syngle noted that this divergence is likely temporary.

The weak demand is not limited to Asian Paints alone. “What is true for us is true for the industry,” said Syngle, underlining that the entire paints sector is facing similar headwinds.

Financially, the company posted a 6% drop in net profit at ₹1,100 crore for Q1FY26, compared to ₹1,170 crore in Q1FY25. Revenue also saw a slight dip to ₹8,939 crore from ₹8,970 crore a year ago.

Despite the near-term pressures, the company remains hopeful for a seasonal uptick in September, weather permitting.