Data Alert
April eight core industries' growth falls to 8-month low of 0.5%
This story was originally published at 17:49 IST on 20 May 2025
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--India Apr eight core industries' growth at 0.5% vs 4.6% in Mar
--India Apr eight core industries' growth of 0.5% lowest in 8 months
NEW DELHI - Growth in the output of India's eight core industries fell to an eight-month low of 0.5% in April because of a fall in the production of refinery products, crude oil, and fertilisers, data released Tuesday by the commerce ministry showed.
Core sector growth was 6.9% in April 2024, while the March print was revised higher to 4.6% from the provisional estimate of 3.8%. On a sequential basis, the index of core industries fell 11.3% in April, the biggest month-on-month fall since April 2021.
Output of refinery products--which have biggest weightage in core sector--contracted 4.5% year-on-year in April, their worst performance since November 2022. Refinery products output grew 0.2% in March. Crude oil output fell 2.8% on year in April compared to a decline of 1.9% in the previous month.
Fertilisers output contracted 4.2% on year in April, the biggest fall in 14 months. While the other five sectors grew on a year-on-year basis in April, the growth was quicker than March in only two sectors--coal and natural gas.
Coal sector output grew at a three-month high pace of 3.5% last month compared to 1.6% in March, while natural gas production rose on year for the first time in 10 months at 0.4%. Natural gas output fell 12.7% on year in March.
"Crude oil production was down by 2.8% mainly due to low global prices which causes substitution for domestic production," Madan Sabnavis, chief economist, Bank of Baroda, said in a note "Refinery production growth at (-)4.5% is a reflection of lower export demand in particular," Sabnavis noted.
The modest growth in core sector output should push growth in Index of Industrial Production lower in April from 3.0% in March, economists said. ICRA Chief Economist Aditi Nayar said that the tepid rise in the core sector and the performance of the other available high frequency indicators show IIP growth could fall sharply to around 1.0% in April. The IIP data for April will be released on May 28.
The following tables give the year-on-year changes in the index of the eight infrastructure sectors in April:
| April 2025 |
March 2025 |
April 2024 |
|
| Coal | 3.5% | 1.6% | 7.5% |
| Crude oil | (-)2.8% | (-)1.9% | 1.7% |
| Natural gas | 0.4% | (-)12.7% | 8.6% |
| Refinery products | (-)4.5% | 0.2% | 3.9% |
| Fertilisers | (-)4.2% | 8.8% | (-)0.8% |
| Steel | 3.0% | 9.3% | 9.8% |
| Cement | 6.7% | 12.2% | 0.2% |
| Electricity | 1.0% | 7.5% | 10.2% |
| Overall | 0.5% | 4.6% | 6.9% |
End
Reported by Shubham Rana
Edited by Vandana Hingorani
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