New Delhi: The Combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) slowed down to a 6-month low of 7.8% in November 2023. This is the slowest pace of growth recorded since May, when the eight sectors cumulatively grew 5.2%. It was at 5.7% in November last year. Data released by Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry revealed this.
The ICI is calculated after considering the combined and individual performance of production of 8 core industries. These core industries are, Cement, Coal, Crude Oil, Electricity, Fertilizers, Natural Gas, Refinery Products and Steel. The 8 core industries comprise 40.27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
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As per data, this November, coal and refinery products supported the core industries’ output with significant increase in production, while cement and crude oil production contracted. Crude oil production contracted a marginal 0.4% in November from the year-ago period, but cement production saw a sharp contraction of 3.6%.
Among the eight industries, coal output recorded 10.9% growth, which was the lowest since June 2023. Steel production expanded 9.1% in November, down from 10.7% in October. The sector had seen 11.5% growth in November 2022. Electricity generation grew 5.6% in November 2023 against 20.3% expansion seen in October and 12.7% in November 2022.
Refinery products’ production growth stood at 12.4% in November this year against a growth of 4.2% in October. Production of fertilizer grew by 3.4% in November this year as against a 5.3% expansion in October.
Overall, in the eight months (April-November) of the current fiscal 2023-24, core sector output has expanded 8.6% compared to 8.1% in the corresponding period of the last fiscal (2022-23).
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