India's industrial output shrinks by 2.3 pc in Mar

New Delhi, May 12: India's industrial production continue to decline for the fourth month, mainly on account of poor performance by the manufacturing sector. It declined to 2.3 pc in the month of March as compared to a rise of 5.5 per cent during the corresponding month in 2008.

The data was worse than the 0.7 per cent contraction that was being forecast by market economists. For 2008-09, growth in industrial output was a meagre 2.4 per cent, down from a high of 8.5 per cent during the previous financial year, according to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) figures released by the government on Tuesday, May 12.

The Manufacturing output contracted by 3.3 pc during March resulted in this decline. The sector which accounts for almost 80 per cent of the index, registered an increase of 5.7 per cent during the same month in 2008. While the Power generation sector rose by 6.3 pc, the mining sector recorded dismal growth of 0.4 per cent during March as compared to an increase of 4.9 per cent.

OneIndia News