India`s factory output grows to 7-month high of 5.9% in May
India’s factory output, measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), grew to a seven-month high of 5.9 per cent in May 2024, led by better-than-expected expansion in power and mining sectors. Industrial growth was 5 per cent in April, 5.4 per cent in March, 5.6 per cent in February and 4.2 per cent in January 2024. The IIP was 5.7 per cent in May 2023. The previous high of IIP was recorded at 11.9 per cent in October 2023. For the month of May 2024, the Quick Estimates of IIP with base 2011-12 stands at 154.2 against 145.6 in May 2023. During the April-May period this fiscal, the IIP growth was 5.4 per cent against 5.1 per cent in the preceding financial year.
As per the latest data, the mining output growth accelerated to 6.6 per cent in May against a 6.4 per cent expansion in the year-ago month. The manufacturing sector’s growth decelerated to 4.6 per cent in May compared to 6.3 per cent a year ago. The power generation increased by an impressive 13.7 per cent in May against a flat growth of 0.9 per cent the same month of the last year. The Indices of Industrial Production for the Mining, Manufacturing and Electricity sectors for the month of May 2024 stand at 136.5, 149.7 and 229.3 respectively.
As per use-base classification, the output of primary goods logged a 7.3 per cent growth in May this year, up from 3.6 per cent a year earlier. The capital goods segment growth fell to 2.5 per cent in May 2024 from 8.1 per cent in the year-ago period. The expansion in the intermediate goods segment was 2.5 per cent in the month under review, higher than the 3.4 per cent recorded a year ago. Infrastructure/construction goods reported a growth of 6.9 per cent in May 2024, down from a 13 per cent expansion in the year-ago period. In May this year, consumer durables output expanded 12.3 per cent against 1.5 per cent growth in May 2023. Consumer non-durable goods production growth slowed by 2.3 per cent during the reporting month against a growth of 8.9 per cent in May 2023.