The Asian Development Bank (ADB), on Friday, cut India’s growth forecast to 5.4 per cent in 2012-13, barely two months after it had made a projection of 5.6 per cent growth for the Asia’s third largest economy.
“India’s growth forecast is revised from 5.6 per cent to 5.4 per cent in fiscal year 2012 and from 6.7 per cent to 6.5 per cent in 2012-13,” the ADB said in its supplement to the ‘Asian Development Outlook (ADO) 2012’
This is the fourth time that the bank has slashed the growth estimates for India.
In the ADO released in April, the ADB had projected India to grow at 7 per cent. But it lowered its estimate to 6.5 per cent in July and further to 5.6 per cent in the ADO October update, citing falling global demand and impact of delayed monsoon on agricultural production.
As regards developing Asia, which comprises 45 nations, the ADB lowered its 2012 growth forecast marginally to 6 per cent from 6.1 per cent. It also revised downward the growth outlook for 2013 to 6.6 per cent from 6.7 per cent projected earlier.
India’s economy has slowed in the recent years on the back of domestic and global factors. — PTI
