New Delhi: Industrial production grew 2.6 percent in January mainly on account of improvement in manufacturing activity and better offtake of capital goods.
The growth in factory output, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), was 1.1 percent in January 2014.
For the April-January period of 2014-15, IIP grew 2.5 percent as against a meagre rise of 0.1 percent in same period of the last fiscal as per the data released by Central Statistics Office (CSO) Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the December IIP has been revised upwards to 3.23 percent from the provisional estimates of 1.7 percent released last month.
As per government data released today, manufacturing output, which constitutes over 75 percent to the index, grew by 3.3 percent in January compared to a meagre growth of 0.3 percent in the same month a year ago.
For April-January period, the sector saw an output growth of 1.7 percent, compared to a contraction of 0.3 percent in the year-ago period.
The production of capital goods, a barometer of demand, grew by 12.8 percent in January as against a contraction of 3.9 percent in same month of last year.
During the April-January period, capital goods output grew by 5.7 percent as against a dip of 0.8 percent.
Fourteen out of the 22 industry groups in the manufacturing sector have shown positive growth during the month of January year-on-year.
According to the IIP data, the power generation grew by 2.7 percent in January compared to 6.5 percent in the same month last year.
During April-January period, electricity production grew by 9.3 percent compared to a growth of 5.7 percent in the corresponding period last fiscal.
However the output in the mining sector contracted by 2.8 percent in January, compared to a growth of 2.7 percent in the same month last year. During April-January period, output has grown by 1.3 percent compared to a contraction of 1.1 percent year-on-year.
The overall consumer goods output has declined by 1.9 percent in January compared to a dip of 0.5 percent in the same month last year. During April-January, the output of these goods contracted by 4.7 percent compared to a dip of 2.7 percent in the corresponding period last fiscal.
Similarly, consumer durables output also contracted by 5.3 percent compared to a decline in production by 8.3 percent in the same month last year. In April-January the output declined by 14.2 percent compared to a dip of 12.5 percent in the same period last fiscal.
The consumer non-durable production also contracted by 0.1 percent in January compared to a growth of 4.5 percent in same month last year. During April-January the output grew by 1.9 percent compared to a growth of 5.7 percent.
The intermediate goods also saw decline in production by 0.8 percent in January compared to a growth of 4.3 percent in same month last year.
However the basic goods output grew by 4.5 percent in January compared a growth of 2.8 percent in same month last year.
Some of the important items showing high positive growth during January over the same month in previous year include Polythene bags, Woollen Carpets, Conductor Aluminium, Stainless/alloy steel, Gems and Jewellery, Plastic Machinery including Moulding Machinery, PVC Pipes and Tubes, Cable, Rubber Insulated, Carbon Steel, Rice, Air Conditioner (Room) and Boilers.
Some of the other important items showing high negative growth are: Electric Sheets, Telephone Instruments (including Mobile Phones & Accessories), Heat Exchangers, Ship Building & Repairs, Tractors, Computers, Steel Structures, Generator/ Alternator, Wood Furniture and Colour TV Sets.
