India's informal sector deleverages: loans per unit drop 20% to Rs 42,776, capex falls 14%

MoSPI's ASUSE 2025 reveals 7.92 crore informal enterprises—99.94% micro—are pulling back. Outstanding loans per establishment fell 20% YoY, fixed asset additions dropped 14%, and interest payable shrank 16%, even as bank credit to micro/small industry rose 33%. Signals weak micro-enterprise confidence despite 74.5 lakh jobs added.

— Filed Fri, 15 May, 2026, 07:27 IST · Source Indian Express · Business · Updated

MoSPI ASUSE 2025 shows India's informal sector—covering small traders, manufacturers and service units—deleveraging: outstanding loans per establishment fell 20% to Rs 42,776 and investment dropped 14%, signaling weak micro-enterprise capex even as bank credit to small industry rose 33%.

Why this matters

ASUSE 2025 is the first read on India's 7.92 crore informal enterprises post-survey, signaling that micro-units are deleveraging and cutting capex even as formal bank credit to small industry expands sharply.

Retail-company signals steady at 204 in last 90 days, with informal-sector caution emerging as a new datapoint.