Core industry index shows negative growth in November

The industrial output index for India's eight core industries (ECI) registered a decline in November, pulled down by lower crude oil, natural gas, steel, cement and refinery output.

The index representing major infrastructure sectors recorded a growth in October, as also in November 2014.

The ECI showed a decline of (-)1.3 percent in November 2015 on a month-on-month basis, compared to the 3.2 percent growth in October, official data showed on Thursday.

The core industries also grew 3.2 percent in September.

The select factory output index for November compares with the growth of 8.5 percent achieved during the corresponding month in 2014, a commerce ministry release said.

The ECI comprises 38 percent of the total weightage of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

The index's cumulative growth from April to November 2015-16 stood at 2 percent, as compared to 6 percent during the corresponding period of 2014-15.

Out of the eight core industries, fertilisers, coal and cement reported healthy output numbers, while electricity generation remained the same as in November last year. However, production of refinery products, crude oil, natural gas, steel and cement dwindled in the period under review.

Electricity recorded no change in November 2015 as compared with November 2014. Its cumulative index during April to November 2015-16 increased by 4.2 percent over the corresponding period of previous year.

Distilling of refinery products, the third most important component as per weightage, increased by 2.5 percent in November.

Extraction of crude oil, which has a 5.21 percent weightage in IIP, fell by 3.3 percent during the month under review in comparison with the data for November 2014.

Coal mining, with a 4.38 percent weightage, increased by 3.5 percent.

Cement manufacturing, with a weightage of 2.41 percent, fell by 1.8 percent in the last month.

The sub-index for natural gas output, with a weightage of 1.71 percent, slipped by 3.9 percent in the month under consideration.

The fertilisers manufacturing with a weightage of only 1.25 percent rose exponentially by 13.5 percent.