Growth of 8 Core Sectors Slows to 2.1% in July; Down From 7.3% Last Year

New Delhi: Growth of eight core industries dropped to 2.1% in July, mainly due to contraction in coal, crude oil and natural gas production, according to government data released on Monday.

The eight core sector industries — coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity — had expanded by 7.3% in July last year.

These core industries comprise 40.27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

Output of coal, crude oil, natural gas and refinery products recorded negative growth during the month under review.

Also read: For India Inc’s Sob Story, Sitharaman Has a Sop Story. But Will It Help?

Similarly, growth rate in production of steel, cement and electricity declined to 6.6%, 7.9% and 4.2%, respectively, as against 6.9%, 11.2% and 6.7%.

However, fertiliser output marginally grew by 1.5% in July as against 1.3% in July 2018.

For April-July period, the eight sectors growth rate almost halved to 3% as compared to 5.9% in the same period last year.

The growth rate of these eight sectors are declining since April this year. It slowed down to 5.2% in April from 5.8%. Then it came down to 4.3% in May and 0.7% in June.

The GDP data too has shown deceleration with the growth rate coming down to over six year low of 5% in the first quarter of the current fiscal, mainly on account of sharp dip in manufacturing sector, which registered almost a flat growth of 0.6%.

The Wire is now on WhatsApp. Follow our channel for sharp analysis and opinions on the latest developments.