According to government data issued on June 10, industrial output grew to an eight-month high of 7.1 percent in April, owing to stronger performance in the power and mining sectors.
The manufacturing sector grew by 6.3 percent in the first month of the current fiscal year, according to National Statistical Office (NSO) figures on the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
The NSO also stated that output in the primary, intermediate, infrastructure/construction, and consumer non-durables sectors increased by 10.1 percent, 7.6 percent, 3.8 percent, and 0.3 percent, respectively.
Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist, ICRA, said: “The low base of the second wave of COVID-19 bumped up the IIP growth to an 8-month high of 7.1% in April 2022, although it trailed our expectation (9.2%), led by a weaker-than-anticipated performance of mining.”
In light of the uncertainties created by geopolitical developments, the weak showing of capital goods output relative to the pre-COVID level confirmed the view that the uptick in capacity utilization in the fourth quarter of 2021-22 would not trigger a rapid private sector capacity expansion, she added.
Millwood Kane International’s founder and CEO, Nish Bhatt, stated industrial output has increased month over month and year over year.
Though industrial growth has seen an uptick, it has been very erratic, it needs sustained growth over a long period of time for policymakers to take note of it,” he pointed out.The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which will be reported next week, is another important piece of information to keep an eye on, according to Mr. Bhatt.
