Manufacturing Sector Reported A Negative Growth - Feb 13, 2009

India Inc on Thursday while expressing disappointment over the weak industrial growth asked for more measures to boost the slowing demand, besides implementation of already announced stimulus packages and further interest rates cuts.

Ficci said the several measures was taken by the government and these should be implemented timely. "After the review of the situation we may need further package," it said.

However, Sajjan Jindal, the Assocham President said that in the recent past such a negative growth was never recorded in the manufacturing sector. So huge fiscal along with excise and other duty concessions are immediately required to give a support to the industry fall back on growth momentum.

Manufacturing sector reported a negative growth of 2.5 per cent as compared to 8.6 per cent in December 2007. The IIP had contracted for the first time in 15 years in October 2008.

Industrial Growth Slips To 4.8% - Nov 13, 2008

It was a poor show by the manufacturing sector once again that pulled down the industrial growth rate to 4.8 per cent in September from a much healthier seven per cent growth reported in the same month last year. Surprisingly, while experts tended to analyse the index of industrial production (IIP) data released here on Wednesday as a clear signal of an economic slowdown to correct, which would require a fiscal stimulus along with a further cut in key rates by the Reserve Bank of India, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram dubbed the growth figures as ''encouraging,'' especially when compared to the dismal performance in August.

As for the first six months of the current fiscal, the industrial growth rate stands halved at 4.9 per cent as compared to 9.5 per cent during April-September 2007-08. In a statement, Mr. Chidambaram viewed that the IIP data for September were encouraging, mainly because the overall growth for the month was significantly higher than the provisional estimate of 1.3 per cent and the subsequently revised figure of 1.42 per cent.