NRIs to the rescue

There has always been a time when we have blamed it on the NRI’s- rising property values, increase in retail and electronic sales despite the slump in market. Well, thanks to NRIs, the rupee wage earners don’t have much say in the market. At least, this is true for the markets of Kerala and Punjab.

Most consumer electronic brands outdid their Onam sales target in Kerala this year, with Malayalis settled abroad returning home for the festival and going on a splurging spree, thanks to the Forex benefit. Sony has earned around Rs.200 crores sales from Onam in Kerala alone while Samsung has achieved its target of Rs.250 crore sales. Panasonic India too has seen a sales increase by 20% in the past 3 months in Punjab. There is no surprise, hence, when the World Bank reports that India is the largest recipient of remittances in the world receiving around $69 billion in 2012.

And, well, with Ganesh Chaturthi already on and Dusherra, Diwali and New Year in the pipeline; the NRI visits will only increase and that means one thing to the retail, electronics and consumer goods chains: ka-ching!