Key infra sectors’ growth slows to 6.7% in February

PTI

New Delhi, March 28

The growth of eight key infrastructure sectors slowed to 6.7 per cent in February due to poor performance of some sectors like fertiliser, according to official data released on Thursday. However, on a sequential basis, the growth rate is highest in the last three months.

The growth of eight core sectors — coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity — was 4.1 per cent in January. It was 7.4 per cent in February 2023. Cumulatively also, the growth rate in the output of these sectors slowed to 7.7 per cent in April-January this fiscal against 8.2 per cent in April-February 2022-23. The output growth of fertiliser was in the negative zone.

The eight core sectors contribute 40.27 per cent to the country’s Index of Industrial Production (IIP). According to the data, the growth rate in the output of refinery products, steel, and electricity declined in February.