Core Sector Grows 6.7% In January; Cement, Refinery Output Surge
India’s eight core infrastructure sectors grew at 6.7 percent in January.
Eight infrastructure sectors grew at a faster pace of 6.7 percent in January against 3.4 percent in the year-ago month as petroleum and cement output zoomed while steel, power, and coal production improved.
The eight core sectors -- coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement and electricity -- grew by 4.2 percent in December and 7.4 percent in November.
Here’s the break-up of the January performance:
- Petroleum refinery production jumped 11 percent.
- Cement output jumped 20.7 percent.
- Electricity generation growth rose to 8.2 percent.
- Coal sector output improved by 3 percent.
- Steel production grew 3.7 percent.
- Crude oil production dropped 3.2 percent
- Fertiliser output dropped 1.6 percent
- Natural gas output fell 1 percent.
Cumulatively, the growth in the eight core sectors during April-January this fiscal slowed to 4.3 percent as against 5.1 percent in the same period last fiscal.
The growth in key sectors will have implications for the Index of Industrial Production as these eight segments account for about 41 percent of the total factory output.