India’s new services speedometer flashes green across 17 sectors

India’s services economy showed broad-based growth in July, with 17 of the 19 sub-sectors tracked by the government’s new Index of Services Production (ISP) expanding year-on-year and 10 recording double-digit growth.

Administrative and support services led the expansion with 20.9% growth, followed by retail trade at 18.5%, real estate at 14.4%, accommodation and food services at 12.6% and banking at 12.3%, according to data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on Tuesday.

Also Read: Index of services production shows 8 sub-sectors record double-digit growth in June


The July data offer an early monthly read on the services economy, which accounts for more than half of India’s gross value added, at a time when the government is seeking more frequent indicators of economic activity. The ISP is being released on a trial basis and is designed to complement the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), which tracks industrial output.

What is the Index of Services Production?

The ISP is a monthly indicator designed to measure changes in the real volume of output produced by the services sector relative to a base period. In simple terms, it is intended to do for services what the IIP does for industry — provide a high-frequency snapshot of how activity is moving from month to month.

That fills an important gap in India’s economic data. Services have contributed more than 50% of gross value added since 2013-14, but the country has historically lacked a comparable monthly measure of services output. The ISP is intended to strengthen economic monitoring, forecasting and business-cycle analysis.

The current trial series uses 2024-25 as the base year and covers 19 formal services sub-sectors, including trade, transport, telecommunications, banking, insurance, real estate, IT and professional services.

Retail, real estate and business services drive growth

Retail trade recorded an 18.5% year-on-year increase in July, with its ISP rising to 140 from 118.2 a year earlier. Wholesale trade also remained strong, growing 12.1%.

Real estate activity rose 14.4%, while accommodation and food services grew 12.6%. Banking expanded 12.3%, and IT and computer-related services rose 10.7%.

Professional, scientific and technical services, including research and development, grew 10.4%, while administrative and support services — the fastest-growing segment — expanded 20.9%.

Also Read: What is the Index of Services Production and which sectors does it cover?

Telecommunications and information and broadcasting also recorded double-digit growth, rising 11% and 10%, respectively.

Among transport-related activities, road transport grew 9.9%, warehousing and support activities for transportation rose 9.8%, water transport increased 7.7% and railways grew 7.5%.

Not all services moved higher

The expansion was broad but not universal.

Repair services contracted 5% year-on-year in July, while air transport declined 8.4%. Arts, entertainment and recreation services recorded a modest 1.7% increase.

The air transport index fell to 87.8 in July from 95.9 a year earlier, while repair services stood at 126.3 against 133 in July 2025.

Why the new index matters

The monthly ISP is intended to give policymakers and businesses a more timely read on services activity between quarterly GDP releases. Unlike the IIP, which focuses on industrial production, the new indicator covers a range of activities that increasingly drive India’s economy.

MoSPI has said the trial series will allow it to assess data quality and resilience and gather feedback before the methodology is finalised. The indices for railways, banking and insurance are based on provisional monthly data and will be revised annually.

The July release therefore represents not only another monthly snapshot of the services economy, but also another step in building a regular high-frequency gauge for the country’s largest broad economic sector.