Higher crude prices may delay margin recovery for paint companies

News: Crude oil prices have risen ~30% in the last two months and are trading about US$100+ per barrel, which may delay a margin recovery for paint companies.

Views: If crude oil prices continue to trade above US$90- 95 per barrel, paint companies may face further margin pressure in the absence of any price hikes. Companies have already taken price hikes of about 21% YTD to offset higher raw material prices. In case of further price hike, we may see downtrading within paint products thereby restricting margin recovery.

Impact: Negative