Manufacturing PMI 'stagnates' in Sept

Manufacturing activity in India slackened in October as new orders stagnated in the wake of subdued demand conditions, largely due to "negative impacts" of GST, a monthly survey said on Wednesday. The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 50.3 in October, from 51.2 in September, indicating a "broad stagnation" in the manufacturing sector. This is for the third consecutive month that the index has come in above 50 that separates expansion from contraction.

The decline in manufacturing activity was mostly because of stagnation in new business as "negative impacts" of GST led to subdued demand conditions. Moreover, new export orders dropped at the fastest pace since September 2013. "India's manufacturing companies struggled somewhat as the recent recovery enjoyed by the sector lost impetus in October," said Aashna Dodhia, Economist at IHS Markit and author of the report, adding that "manufacturing production rose at the weakest pace in the current sequence of growth".

Dodhia further noted that "inflows of new orders stagnated as the negative effects arising from implementation of GST continued to dampen demand levels. Furthermore, overseas demand for Indian goods dipped to the greatest extent.

The decline in manufacturing activity was mostly because of stagnation in new business as "negative impacts" of GST led to subdued demand