Core Sector Posts 0.5% Dip In May

The infrastructure sector recorded a 0.5 per cent decline in May 2001, down from an eight per cent rise in the corresponding month last fiscal.

All sectors, other than coal and power, recorded a negative growth during the month.

The index of six infrastructure industries, which constitutes 26.6 per cent of the index of industrial production, was 156.1 in May 2001, down from 158.0 in May 2000.

The infrastructure index had recorded 1.6 per cent month-on-month growth in April 2001.

Crude petroleum turned in the worst performance with 6.8 per cent fall in growth, much worse than 3.5 per cent decline in production recorded in May 2000.

Petroleum refinery products recorded a 4.1 per cent fall in production, another major drop from the 32.4 per cent growth in the corresponding month last year.

Cement recorded a 1.7 per cent fall in production in May 2001 compared to a 4.6 per cent growth in May 2000. Production of finished steel fell by one per cent as against a nine per cent rise in output in May 2000.

Electricity production grew by 2.8 per cent, coal by 0.4 per cent in May 2001 as compared to 6.5 per cent and 12.9 per cent growth respectively in May 2000.

Within the power sector, hydro electricity production was down to 5,688 million kwh from 6,307 million kwh in May 2000, and thermal and nuclear power output was higher than the corresponding month last year.