New Delhi: India posted annual economic growth of 6.3% in its July-September quarter, far slower than the 13.5% growth reported in the previous three months as distortions caused by COVID-19 lockdowns faded in Asia’s third-largest economy.
The gross domestic product (GDP) had expanded by 8.4% in the July-September quarter of 2021-22, according to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO).
The growth rate was above the 6.2% forecast by economists for the quarter, the second of India’s 2022-23 financial year, in a Reuters poll.
According to rating agency Icra, the GDP was likely to grow at 6.5% while State Bank of India, in its report, had projected the growth rate at 5.8% for the July-September quarter of this fiscal year.
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Earlier this month, in an article published in the Reserve Bank of India bulletin, the GDP growth was pegged at 6.1-6.3% in the second quarter of this fiscal year.
China registered an economic growth rate of 3.9% in the July-September quarter of this fiscal.
Separately, government capital spending increased more than 40% as the federal government stepped up expenditure on infrastructure from roads to railways.
Among key sectors, agricultural output rose 4.6% while manufacturing fell 4.3% and the employment-generating construction sector saw a 6.6% annual increase in activity.
(With inputs from agencies)