Activity in the eight core sectors of the economy accelerated to a 13-month high of 6.7% in November, according to data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Monday, with growth being propelled by the steel and cement sectors.
The index of core industries had grown by 5% in October. In November, the cement sector grew at a record high of 17.3% compared with a contraction of 1.34% in October.
The steel sector grew 16.6% in November, the highest growth the sector has seen since October 2016.
It had grown 8.44% in October 2017. “This does not point to a recovery in construction, but more towards demand created by public sector investment, particularly in roads,” D.K. Srivastava, chief policy adviser in EY India, said.
‘Time lag’
“A tangible trend is not there in the private sector, but this usually follows activity in the public sector, so it will take some time.” The coal sector slowed for the third consecutive month, contracting by 0.23% in November.
The sector had grown 15.4% in August. The crude oil sector grew marginally in November, by 0.22%, climbing from a contraction of 0.42% in October. Growth in the natural gas sector slowed in November to 2.4% compared with 2.9% in October. At the same time, growth in the refinery products sector quickened to 8.15% in November from 7.49% in October.
Electricity slows
As for the fertilizers sector, growth slowed to 0.27% in November from 3% in October. Growth in the electricity sector similarly slowed to 1.85% in November from 3.24% in the previous month.
The eight infrastructure sectors of coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilizers, steel, cement, and electricity constitute 40.27% of the total industrial production.
