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Informist, Wednesday, Apr. 23, 2025

 

--India Apr flash composite PMI output index 60.0 vs 59.5 Mar final

--India Apr flash services PMI activity index 59.1 vs 58.5 Mar final

--India Apr flash manufacturing PMI 58.4 vs 58.1 Mar final

 

NEW DELHI – India's private sector activity likely expanded at a faster pace in April as the HSBC flash composite Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 60.0 from 59.5 in March, on the back of an "unprecedented" growth in overseas orders for both goods and services, compiler S&P Global said Wednesday.

 

"New export orders accelerated sharply, likely buoyed by the 90-day pause in the implementation of tariffs. As a result, output and employment grew, for both, manufacturers and service providers," Pranjul Bhandari, chief India economist at HSBC, said.

 

The increase was greater for the services sector, whose flash indicator rose to 59.1 from 58.5 in March, while the manufacturing index edged up to 58.4 from 58.1. A PMI reading of more than 50 denotes expansion in activity from the previous month, while a print below it indicates contraction. The final PMI numbers for April will be released in the first week of May.

 

According to S&P Global, new export orders in April grew at the fastest pace since the series started in September 2014, with companies seeing higher orders from across the world.

 

Responses for the flash PMI data are collected in the second half of each month, with the indices calculated from 80-90% of total responses. As such, they would have taken into account the pause in the so-called reciprocal tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump on Apr. 9, a week after they came into effect. If the final PMIs are the same as the flash numbers, the manufacturing index will be the highest in 12 months, with the services number at a four-month high. The composite figure, meanwhile, would be the highest since August.

 

Indian manufacturers and service providers said April saw higher output due to efficiency gains and positive demand trends, with exports becoming more competitive because of the rupee's depreciation against the US dollar. While the flash services PMI rose more than its manufacturing counterpart, S&P Global said that goods producers saw a stronger rate of expansion in export orders than service providers. Even at the overall level, new business rose faster for manufacturing companies than service providers.

 

The "robust" increase in new orders pushed up capacity pressures, with order backlogs rising the most in April since August 2022. Consequently, jobs rose across both manufacturing and services sectors at an equal pace.

 

In terms of sentiment, there was an improvement among goods producers, while service firms saw "fading optimism", resulting in the degree of positivity falling to an eight-month low at the composite level.

 

Looking ahead, manufacturers in April raised input purchases "to rebuild stocks and safeguard against shortages", with growth in holdings of raw materials and semi-finished items hitting an eight-month high. Post-production inventories, meanwhile, dropped the most in nearly three-and-a-half years, with orders being met from warehouses. On the price front, inputs costs in April rose at a pace similar to March. Costs for services rose more than for manufacturers. Prices charged to customers, meanwhile, rose more in April than in March, with inflation for manufacturers' products rising to an over 12-year high.  End

 

Reported by Siddharth Upasani

Edited by Vandana Hingorani

 

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