The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): India’s growth in its eight fundamental infrastructure sectors has decelerated to 6.7% in February, marking a slowdown attributed primarily to weaker performance in certain areas, notably fertiliser. Despite this, the reported growth represents the highest sequential increase observed over the past three months, indicating a mixed but positive trajectory.
In contrast to the 4.1% growth recorded in January, February’s figures show a slight improvement but fall short of the 7.4% growth rate achieved in the same month last year. Looking at the broader fiscal picture from April to January, the cumulative growth of these sectors has somewhat decelerated to 7.7%, compared to 8.2% during the equivalent period in the previous fiscal year, showcasing a slight cooling in the pace of expansion.
The sectors under consideration, which include coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement, and electricity, collectively play a significant role in India’s industrial output, contributing 40.27% to the country’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP). Among these, fertiliser output notably declined, reflecting sector-specific challenges.
However, it wasn’t all downtrend in February. Several sectors witnessed robust growth; coal production surged by 11.6%, crude oil by 7.9%, natural gas by 11.3%, and cement by 10.2%, indicating strong performance in these areas despite the overall slowdown.
Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist at Icra Ltd, commented on the situation, noting the core sector’s growth reaching a three-month peak in February. She highlighted that three industries—coal, cement, and natural gas—experienced double-digit growth, underpinning a potentially healthy expansion in the IIP, which is anticipated to grow by 6.0-6.5% for February 2024.
This mixed performance underscores the nuanced nature of India’s economic recovery, with sector-specific trends shaping the broader narrative of industrial growth.