Key infra sectors' growth at 3% in Sept, Pg11.

Key Highlights:

• Eight core infrastructure sectors grew by 3% in September, a decrease from 6.5% in August.
• This is the lowest growth in the last three months, lower than the 2.4% growth in September of last year.
• Coal, crude oil, refinery products, and natural gas saw a fall in output during September.
• Steel and electricity output increased by 14.1% and 2.1%, respectively, year-on-year.

Detailed Insights:

• The eight core sectors include coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement, and electricity.
• During April-September of this fiscal year, the eight infrastructure sectors expanded by 2.9%, compared to 4.3% in the same period last year.
• Slowdown in fertilizer and cement production is recorded, with growth rates of 1.6% and 5.3% respectively.
• The core industries account for 40.27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), impacting overall industrial growth.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Index of Industrial Production (IIP): An index that shows the growth rates of various industry groups in the economy during a fixed period.
• Core Sectors: The primary industries that are the main constituents of an economy and have a significant impact on most other industries.