India’s March industrial output misses expectations but rebounds from 6-month low

NEW DELHI: India’s industrial output in March missed economists’ expectations amid a quicker data release and slower mining activity, but rebounded from a six-month low in the previous month, government data showed on Monday.

Industrial output grew 3% year-on-year in March, compared to the 3.3% growth expected by economists polled by Reuters and a revised 2.7% in February.

Mining activity rose at a slower pace of 0.4% compared to 1.6% a month earlier, the data showed. Manufacturing output advanced 3% in March against a revised 2.8% in the previous month, while electricity generation grew 6.3% from 3.6% in February.

Earlier this month, India decided to release its industrial output growth numbers on the 28th of every month, cutting down on the previous 42-day gap between data releases.

The data’s early release may have dampened estimated growth and could undergo a relatively larger revision later, Aditi Nayar, an economist at ICRA, said.

India’s industrial output rises 2.9% y/y in February

Consumer durables output, which includes household appliances and vehicles, rose 6.6% in March against a revised 3.7% jump in February.

Output of capital goods, which includes manufacturing plants and machinery, increased 2.4% in March compared to an 8.2% rise in the prior month.

Industrial output increased 4% in the April-March period, slowing down from 5.9% in the year-ago period.

Despite ongoing positive trade negotiations between the United States and India, uncertainty over potential U.S. import tariffs and sudden policy shifts continue to cast a shadow over industries globally.