Can India’s FMCG sector report good earnings anymore?

Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector in India grew at a scorching pace of 14%-18% over the past two decades. All this changed over the past three years.
 
India's FMCG sector has been on a slow path for the few past quarters. Even as sales and operating profit grew, the sector saw a decline in its volume growth. Simply put, Indians have been buying as many FMCG goods as they used to.
 
Now that the first three months of the current fiscal years have come to a close, what can be expected from the sector? Is anticipation of a good monsoon enough to lift sales?
 
Varun Lohchab, Manish Poddar and Premal Kamdar of Religare Institutional Research, in a report dated July 4, said, “Our industry interactions suggest that rural demand is tepid and even in the event of a good monsoon season, growth would have a lagged impact, possibly reflecting only in FY18. As against street expectations, we do not build in any meaningful growth in volumes for FY17.”