Industry cheers rise in IIP; feels good days yet to come fully

India Inc today cheered the uptick in industrial output, which grew 4.1 per cent in April, saying the recovery is firmly taking root and turnaround in the investment cycle is imminent, however, the industry feels good days are yet to come fully.
"The figures, which are above market expectations, indicate that green shoots of recovery are currently underway which is also evident by higher excise duty collections during the month," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said.
Industrial production grew at a two-month high of 4.1 per cent in April, primarily driven by the manufacturing sector, but capital goods growth slowed.

"Going forward, CII is hopeful of growth picking up pace backed by positive sentiment and a flurry of policy initiatives undertaken by the government," Banerjee added.
The factory output, measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), was 3.7 per cent in April 2014.
"The reform initiatives taken by the government, which has recently been supported by the monetary easing stance of the RBI, should bring the investment momentum back to the economy," Assocham President Rana Kapoor said.

However the industry body said it feels that the "good days in its true essence are yet to come".
"We feel that it must remain the primary objective of the government to address challenges that would further boost the industrial growth at this juncture," Kapoor said.

The industrial growth for March too has been revised upwards to 2.5 per cent from 2.1 per cent, as per the data released by the government today.
"Going ahead, we expect the effective implementation of the policy environment to not only improve the growth and competitiveness of the industrial sector but also to push economic growth on high road," PHD Chamber President Alok B Shriram said.
Manufacturing output, which constitutes over 75 per cent of the index, grew at higher rate of 5.1 per cent in April as against 3 per cent in the same month last year.
"The manufacturing growth seems to be gaining momentum now as is evident from the healthy growth of key sectors like capital goods and also from the fact that growth is more diversified," Ficci President Jyotsna Suri said.

The production of capital goods, a barometer of demand, however, however, grew at a slower pace of 11.1 per cent in April as against 13.4 per cent in the same month last year.
Mining sector too grew at a slower rate in April.