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| Photo Credit: REUTERS
Growth in India’s eight core sectors slipped to a 20-month low of 4% in June, with most sectors barring coal recording a sharp decline in output growth, steel production at a seven-month low and refinery products slipping into contraction for the first time in five months.
The core sectors’ production grew by 6.4% in May 2024.
The growth of core sectors — coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity — was 8.4% in June 2023.
During April-June this fiscal, the output of core sectors rose by 5.7% against 6% in the same period last fiscal.
Coal output grew 14.8%, the fastest pace in eight months, with production levels at a three-month high. However, electricity generation slipped to a four-month low of 7.7% in June, with output 3.6% below May’s all-time high levels amid a heat wave in many parts of the country.
Cement production recovered mildly to rise 1.9% after two months of contraction, while Steel production grew just 2.7%, the slowest in 27 months. The deceleration in these two sectors could be linked to a slowdown in public capital expenditure due to the general elections.
The eight core sectors contribute 40.27% to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) which measures overall industrial growth.
(with inputs from PTI)
