Infra sector growth at 7-month high of 5.1% in Sept

Annual growth in the eight core sector industries more than doubled to seven-month high of 5.1 percent in September on good production in coal, cement and petroleum refinery sectors.

The growth in the eight infrastructure industries – coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilizers, steel, cement and electricity – was 2.5 per cent in September 2011.

The cumulative growth in the first half of the fiscal was lower at 3.2 percent as against 5 per cent in the same period due to slower expansion in other months.

Coal production in September registered a growth of 21.4 percent compared to its negative growth at (-) 18.2 percent in same month last year, according to the data released by the

Commerce and Industry Ministry. In the first half also, the coal production growth rate

improved to 8.3 percent. Petroleum refinery output too put up a better performance

in the month under review. The growth in the segment was 11.4 percent as compared to 4.3 per cent in September 2011.

Crude oil sector continued to perform poorly as the output remained in the negative zone for the fourth month in succession. The output declined by 1.7 percent. Natural gas production too declined significantly by 14.8 percent.

Expansion in steel production slowed to 2 percent and growth in cement output was 13.4 percent. “The modest growth in September, 2012 was on account of double-digit growth witnessed in the production of Coal, Petroleum Refinery Products and Cement,” the data said.

The eight core sector industries have a weight of 37.9 percent in the overall Index of Industrial Production (IIP). Showing signs of turnaround, IIP grew by 2.7 percent in

August, reversing the trend of contraction witnessed during the previous two months.

PTI