Industrial Growth Slumps To 7-yr Low

In its worst performance in seven years, India’s industrial production contracted 4.3 per cent in September, dragged down by the decline in output of the manufacturing, mining and electricity sectors, official figures released on Monday showed.

According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, this is the lowest figure in the 2011-12 series of Index of Industrial Production (IIP), which was introduced in May 2017.

This was the second straight month of contraction, after a decline of 1.1 per cent in August 2019. In September 2018, the country’s industrial output had expanded 4.6 per cent.

According to the data released on Monday, the IIP contraction in August was further revised downwards to 1.4 per cent.

During April to September, the IIP growth now appears to be flat at 1.3 per cent compared to a 5.2 per cent growth in the same period of the last financial year.

The manufacturing sector, declined by 3.9 per cent in September as compared to 4.8 per cent growth in the same month last year.

The production of capital goods, comprising machines used in factories, which reflect the real investment taking place in the economy, declined by 20.7 per cent during the month compared to a 6.9 per cent increase in the same month last year.