India's core sector growth accelerates to 7.9% in September; refinery output jumps 10.3%

India's core sector output grew 7.9% in September 2026, accelerating from 5.9% in August. The growth was driven by strong production of iron ore, electricity, coal and refinery products, according to provisional data released by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry on Wednesday.

The growth was also significantly higher than the 3.1% recorded in September 2025, indicating an improvement in activity across several key infrastructure-linked industries.

The government revised August's core sector growth upwards to 5.9% from the provisional estimate of 4.8%. The index for August was also revised from 119.2 to 120.4.

According to the ministry, iron ore production recorded the highest growth among the nine core industries, rising 18.4% year-on-year in September.

Electricity generation increased 11.4%, while coal production rose 10.7%. Refinery products output expanded 10.3%, cement production grew 9.8%, and steel output increased 4.9%.

However, three sectors continued to report a decline in production.

Fertiliser output contracted 11.7% in September, marking the steepest fall among the nine industries. Natural gas production declined 4.6%, while crude oil output fell 1.4%.

For the April-September 2026 period, cumulative core sector output grew 5.1%, compared with 2.5% in the corresponding period of the previous financial year.

Iron ore recorded the strongest cumulative growth at 21.2%, followed by electricity at 10.2% and cement at 10.1%.

Steel production rose 4.3% during the six-month period, while refinery products output increased 1%.

However, fertiliser production declined 7.6%, natural gas output fell 4.4%, and crude oil production contracted 3.7%. Coal production was also down 1% during the period.

The Index of Core Industries tracks production across nine key industries: coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement, electricity and iron ore.

These sectors are important indicators of industrial activity, as they supply energy, raw materials and construction inputs to other parts of the economy.

The next set of core sector data, covering October 2026, is scheduled for release on November 20.