Growth in India’s industrial output slumped to 2.4 percent in November from October’s 16-month high of 11.6 percent, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation on January 12, as fewer working days on account of Diwali took a tool on production.
At 2.4 percent, the latest industrial growth figure as per the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) is the lowest in eight months, and is below economists’ expectations of 3.5 percent.
In November 2022, India’s industrial output had grown by 7.6 percent.
For April-November 2023, IIP growth stood at 6.4 percent as against 5.6 percent in the first eight months of 2022-23.
In the penultimate month of 2023, growth was dragged down by the manufacturing sector, which saw its production rise by a mere 1.2 percent on a year-on-year basis after having posted an increase of 10.2 percent in October. The sharp slowdown in manufacturing output growth – which accounts for more than three-fourths of the IIP – was down to the holidays in November on account of festivals, which led to a reduction in working hours and, as a consequence, production.
However, other sectors too saw a decline in growth, with electricity generation increasing by 5.8 percent as opposed to 20.4 percent in October. Meanwhile, mining output was 6.8 percent higher, down from a growth of 13.1 percent in October.