India's core sector output rises 3.7% in January

Production of eight core sectors rose by 3.7 per cent in January 2022 as against a growth of 1.3 per cent in the same month last year, according to official data released on Monday. Barring crude oil and fertilisers, all sectors recorded positive growth in January. The output of eight core sectors had expanded by 4.1 per cent in December 2021.   The eight core industries comprise 40.27 per cent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP). While coal production increased by 8.2 per cent in January, natural gas production grew 11.7 per cent. Petroleum refinery and steel production grew 3.7 per cent and 2.8 per cent, respectively, in the month.   On the other hand, crude oil production declined by 2.4 per cent, while fertiliser output also fell 2 per cent.   The growth rate of the eight infrastructure sectors stood at 11.6 per cent during April-January this fiscal as against a contraction of 8.6 per cent during the same period last fiscal.   The Ministry of Commerce and Industry also revised the final growth rate of core sector output for October 2021 to 8.7 per cent.   Meanwhile, India's gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a slower pace of 5.4 per cent in October-December quarter, primarily due to lackluster manufacturing output and investment, data released by the government's statistics office showed.

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