IIP surges 10.3% to 14-mth high in Aug

New Delhi: India’s industrial production growth rose to a 14-month high of 10.3 per cent in August, mainly due to good show by the manufacturing, mining and power sectors, according to the official data released on Thursday. The factory output growth measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had contracted by 0.7 per cent in August 2022. The previous high was recorded at 12.6 per cent growth in June 2022. The IIP growth for July has been revised to 6 per cent from 5.7 per cent provisional estimates released last month. During April-August 2023-24, the IIP growth works out to be 6.1 per cent, down from 7.7 per cent in the corresponding period a year ago.

“The growth rates over the corresponding period of the previous year are to be interpreted, considering the unusual circumstances on account of the Covid-19 pandemic since March 2020,” an official statement said.

As per the IIP data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the manufacturing sector’s output grew 9.3 per cent in August 2023 against a contraction of 0.5 per cent a year ago. Power generation rose 15.3 per cent in August 2023 compared to 1.4 per cent in the year-ago period. Mining output rose by 12.3 per cent during the month under review against a 3.9 per cent contraction a year ago. As per use-based classification, the capital goods segment grew 12.6 per cent in August this year compared to 4.3 per cent.

Consumer durables output during the month declined by 5.7 per cent against a contraction of 4.4 per cent in the year-ago period. Consumer non-durable goods output increased by 9 per cent compared to a contraction of 9 per cent a year earlier. Infrastructure/construction goods posted a growth of 14.9 per cent against a three per cent expansion a year ago.