India’s core sector growth in January slips to 5-month low

The Dollar Business Bureau

India’s core industries grew at a slower pace in January as a contraction in the production of refinery products, cement and fertilizer weighed.

The overall growth fell to a five-month low at 3.4% in the month, the slowest since August last year, when the sectors had witnessed a growth rate of 3.2%.

In January 2016, the rate of growth in eight infrastructure sectors of coal, natural gas, crude oil, refinery products, steel, fertilisers, electricity and cement was 5.7%, while in December 2016, it was 5.6%.

The production of refinery products, cement and fertiliser declined by 1.5%, 13.3% and 1.6%, respectively, in the month of January.

Coal and electricity sectors expanded at 4.8% during the month under review, compared to 7.9% and 11.6%, respectively, in the same month last year. On the other hand, natural gas, crude oil, and steel output recorded a growth. While crude oil production increased by 1.3%, the output of natural gas and steel grew 11.9% and 11.4%, respectively, in January 2017.

The core sectors, which contribute about 38% to the overall industrial production, expanded 4.8% in the April-January period of 2016-17, compared to the 2.9% growth recorded in the corresponding period of 2015-16, as per the data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Tuesday.