Factory output fell by record 16.7% in Mar
GRIM OUTLOOK April will be worse with nil growth in most sectors, leading to a large dip in manufacturing growth rate
NEW DELHI: India’s factory output shrank by a record 16.7% in March as economic activity came to a standstill because of ongoing nationwide lockdown, prompting the government to announce a massive fiscal stimulus plan to revive industrial activity.
“The picture for April would be worse with virtually nil growth in most sectors, which will mean a very large dip in growth rate in manufacturing. Only some segments like food and pharma could show positive growth,” said Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Care Ratings.
The lockdown, which came into effect on March 25, also impacted data collection for both the index of industrial production and consumer price index (CPI); so much so that the National Statistical Office did not release the retail inflation number for April. It only released price movements of selected sub-groups of CPI as field investigators had to rely on telephonic enquiry for data collection from the designated outlets. The data showed food inflation quickening in April to 10.5% from 8.76% a month ago.
In March, manufacturing output slumped 20.6% while electricity generation shrank 6.8% and mining output grew at 0%, government data showed. For the year ended March 31, factory output contracted 0.7% against 3.8% growth in the previous year. This could impact the final GDP growth for FY20 to be released later this month. Most economists expect GDP to grow close to 4.5% in FY20 against the government’s estimate of 5% growth.
Most forecasters have also slashed their GDP growth projections for FY21, fearing the lingering impact of the lockdown on the Indian economy. Moody’s Investors Service expects the economy to grow at 0% in FY21, while Swiss bank UBS projected the country’s economy to contract 3.1% if mobility restrictions largely stay in place until end-June and economic activity returns to normal by end-August.
The country’s eight infrastructure sectors contracted by a record 6.5% in March after touching an 11-month high in February, data released by industry department last month showed. India’s manufacturing and services Purchasing Managers’ Index have also slumped to record lows.
The lockdown, considered the severest in the world, has led to massive retrenchment and loss of output.
Unemployment rate climbed to 27.1% in the week to May 3 before dropping to 23.97% in the following week, data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy showed.