Core sector growth pace eases to 4.3% in May

The pace of growth of eight key infrastructure sectors slackened to 4.3% in May on account of a decline in the production of crude oil, natural gas and electricity, according to the data released by the government on Friday.

The pace of growth of eight key infrastructure sectors slackened to 4.3% in May on account of a decline in the production of crude oil, natural gas and electricity, according to the data released by the government on Friday.

The core sector growth stood at 19.3% in May 2022.

During April-May this fiscal, the output growth of these eight sectors slowed down to 4.3 per cent against 14.3% in the year-earlier period, the data showed.

Commenting on the numbers, Aditi Nayar, Chief Economist, Head - Research & Outreach, Icra Ltd. said the growth remained broadly stable in May.

"Icra expects the YoY (year-on-year) IIP (index of industrial production) growth to print at about 4-6% in May 2023," she said.

The eight core industries comprise 40.27% of the weight of items included in the IIP.

The output of crude oil contracted by 1.9% during the month under review. Similarly, the production of natural gas and electricity dipped by 0.3% each in May.