Infrastructure Sector Growth Slows to 6.1% in July

The growth in production of eight key infrastructure sectors declined to 6.1% in July due to reduced output in crude oil and natural gas, according to official data. This is an improvement from June's 5.1%. Core sectors include coal, crude oil, natural gas, and more, contributing significantly to the Index of Industrial Production.

The production growth of eight key infrastructure sectors slowed to 6.1 percent in July, according to official data released on Friday.

This decline is attributed to decreasing crude oil and natural gas output, despite the growth rate being higher than June's 5.1 percent.

The core sectors, such as coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement, and electricity, originally grew by 8.5 percent in July 2023. During the April-July fiscal period, overall core sector output rose by 6.1 percent compared to 6.6 percent in the same period last fiscal year. These sectors contribute 40.27 percent to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), an indicator of industrial growth. Specifically, crude oil and natural gas output contracted by -2.9 percent and -1.3 percent, respectively, in July.

(With inputs from agencies.)