Asian Paints (APL) recorded strong growth in net sales by ~15% YoY to | 4483.6 crore (I-direct estimate - | 4345.7 crore) led by a mix of volume growth and price hikes. We believe volume growth of ~11% during the quarter was led by both decorative and industrial paint demand. During FY18, the company took two price hikes in May 2017 and May 2018 by 2.7% and 1.4%, respectively. APL has guided at further hike in prices to offset rising inflationary pressure in raw materials. On the international front, poor...