Data Alert
India June core sector output at 5-month high of 5% in new series
This story was originally published at 18:30 IST on 20 July 2026
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--India Jun nine core industries' growth 5.0%
--India Jun nine core industries' growth 5.0% vs 3.2% in May
--CONTEXT: Govt releases new index of core industries with FY23 as base year
--India Apr-Jun nine core industries' growth 3.6% vs 1.0% year ago
NEW DELHI – The output of India's nine core industries rose 5.0% on year in June, the fastest pace of growth in five months, data released Monday by the commerce ministry showed. Factory output growth in June was buoyed by a growth in production of iron ore, electricity, and cement in the new Index of Core Industries. The output for nine core industries' rose 3.2% on year in May, much higher from 0.5% on-year growth reported for the month based on the old series.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is now tracking production data of nine core industries, instead of eight, under the new series with 2022-23 (Apr-Mar) as the base year revised from FY12 in the old series. In the new series, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade monitors coal, crude oil, natural gas, petroleum refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement, electricity, and iron ore.
The factory output had risen 1.1% in June 2025. Sequentially, the index of nine core industries fell 0.4% in June. Core sector output in Apr-Jun rose 3.6%, up from 1.0% a year ago.
Among the best performing industries was the new entrant iron ore, with its factory output rising to 43.9% on year in June from 19.0% on year in May. The growth in the iron ore industry output was at least at a 13-month-high. "Owing to intensive use of Iron ore in the production process, and its contribution to industrial development, it has been included in the list of core industries as a new item in the revised series of ICI(Base Year 2022-23)," the commerce ministry said in a press release.
Electricity production rose 9.8% on year in June. However, the electricity sector growth was slower than that reported in May at 11.2%. The cement sector production also grew 9.8% on year in June, the fastest in five months. The cement sector output grew 8.4% in May.
The output of the steel sector rose at the slowest pace in at least 13 months. The steel production growth was 4.6% on year in June, compared with 5.1% in May. "Gross production data has been used for compilation of the Steel index in the new ICI series, replacing the use of net production data in ICI (2011-12) series, to make it consistent with Index of Industrial Production," the ministry said.
Production of coal grew 1.4% on year in June, from (-)9.5% in May. The coal sector output was the fastest in four months.
The remaining four industries--natural gas, crude oil, refinery products, and fertilisers--reported contraction in their output in June. Output of the natural gas industry fell 7.4% on year in June, the worst in at least 13 months. The natural gas production was (-)5.0% in May.
The output of the refinery products industry fell 4.7% on year. However, the industry reported a narrowing in fall last month as compared to May, when factory output fell 8.2%. Fertiliser output contracted to 3.3% on year from a fall of 1.0% a month ago. The industry saw a fall in factory output for the fourth consecutive month, reflecting the continued adverse impact of the West Asia tensions, Rahul Agrawal, principal economist at ICRA, said in a note.
Crude oil production remained in the negative territory for at least 13 months, but the fall in factory output was flat on a sequential basis. The output of crude oil fell 4.2% on year in June, mainly due to energy supply chain disruption in the wake of the war.
The following tables give the year-on-year changes in the index of the nine infrastructure sectors in June:
| June 2026 | May 2026 | June 2025 | |
| Coal | 1.4% | (-)9.5% | (-)6.8% |
| Crude oil | (-)4.2% | (-)4.2% | (-)0.5% |
| Natural gas | (-)7.4% | (-)5.0% | (-)3.0% |
| Refinery products | (-)4.7% | (-)8.2% | 3.3% |
| Fertilisers | (-)3.3% | (-)1.0% | (-)1.2% |
| Steel | 4.6% | 5.1% | 10.2% |
| Cement | 9.8% | 8.4% | 7.9% |
| Electricity | 9.8% | 11.2% | (-)1.2% |
| Iron Ore | 43.9% | 19.0% | (-)16.4% |
| Overall | 5.0% | 3.2% | 1.1% |
| Apr-Jun 2026-27 | Apr-Jun 2025-26 | |
| Coal | (-)5.8% | (-)0.2% |
| Crude oil | (-)3.9% | (-)1.8% |
| Natural gas | (-)5.5% | (-)2.7% |
| Refinery products | (-)4.5% | 0.00% |
| Fertilisers | (-)4.1% | (-)3.8% |
| Steel | 4.8% | 9.4% |
| Cement | 8.8% | 7.3% |
| Electricity | 8.9% | (-)1.5% |
| Iron Ore | 24.1% | (-)5.1% |
| Overall | 3.6% | 1.0% |
Source: Ministry of Commerce and Industry
End
Reported by Shweta
Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury
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