Tag: indian manufacturing sector

Indian manufacturing sector activities showed a marginal improvement in December compared to the previous month even as employment generation remained low, showed the widely-tracked IHS Markit purchasing managers' index (PMI) survey. PMI inched up to 56.4 in December compared to 56.3 in November. However, it remained lower than 58.9 in October and 56.8 in September, the two months during which the economy saw a gradual lifting of lockdowns. A reading above 50 shows growth, while the print below 50 means contraction. Reflecting the loosening of Covid-19 restrictions, strengthening demand, and improved market conditions, factory orders increased during December. In response, firms lifted production again. In both cases, rates of expansion remained sharp despite easing to four-month lows. Read more

"The Indian manufacturing sector remained on the right path to recovery, with strong growth of new orders and output sustained during November," Pollyanna De Lima, Economics Associate Director at IHS Markit, said. While all three broad areas of the manufacturing industry recorded expansion, the consumer goods segment led the growth, the only sector to see a stronger rate of increase, the report said. It is believed that the loosening of Covid-19 restrictions, combined with an improvement in market conditions and a pick-up in demand, supported another increase in production, it said. According to the PMI report based on a survey of 500 private sector companies, new export orders expanded at the quickest rate in one year. Read more