May 13, 2006	Saturday	Rabi-us-Sani 14, 1427

MUMBAI, May 12: India’s industrial output slowed to eight per cent for the financial year to March, down from 8.4 per cent the previous year, official data showed Friday.

For March, output decelerated to 7.7 per cent from the same month a year earlier, down from the previous month’s 8.8 per cent rise, hit by a poor mining sector performance, the data from the central statistical organisation showed.

Mining, which encompasses coal and crude oil output, slowed to growth of 0.5 per cent in March from expansion of 6.6 per cent a year earlier.

“The mining sector was clearly hit by higher crude prices. The rest of the core sector and consumer goods, non-durables growth was on track,” said Bidisha Ganguly, chief economist at BRICS Securities.

“Keeping mining figures aside, industrial output growth has been on track.”

According to government figures, key sectors like automobiles, metals, textiles and food products posted year-on-year growth of between 15 and 22 per cent in March.

India’s economy is estimated to have grown by 8.1 per cent in the financial year ended March 31, making it the second-fastest expanding major economy after China.

Around a quarter of India’s gross domestic product comes from industrial output.—AFP