Core growth recovers to 6.6% in Dec

NEW DELHI: India’s infrastructure output registered asmart recovery in December, raising expectations of a revival in industrial production growth.

Output at the six core industries accelerated to 6.6% from a year earlier, faster than a revised growth of 3% in the previous month. The six industries include crude oil, petroleum refining, coal, electricity , cement and finished steel, and they have a combined weight of 26.7% in the index of industrial production ( IIP).

The infrastructure sector growth is considered an advance indicator of the industrial activity. The IIP had slipped to an 18-month low of 2.7% in November, triggering concerns that growth may be moderating. Economists, however, are wary of reading too much in the infrastructure sector growth index because of the high in the recent months and the apparent conflict in numbers.

"Growth in infrastructure sectors is highly volatile and not keeping pace with the rest of the economy," said D K Joshi, chief economist at rating agency Crisil.