India’s core sctor growth picks up to 4.6% in January, cement soars 14.5%

The output of eight key infrastructure sectors grew by 4.6% in January 2025, up from a 4.2% expansion recorded in the same month last year, according to official data released on Friday.

The growth in the core sector, which accounts for 40.27% of the weight in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), was, however, lower than the 4.8% rise recorded in December 2024.

The increase in January was driven by higher production in cement, refinery products, coal, steel, fertilizers, and electricity, while crude oil and natural gas output contracted during the month.

Among the individual sectors, cement production registered the highest growth at 14.5%, followed by petroleum refinery products at 8.3%. coal output rose by 4.6%, steel by 3.7%, fertilizers by 3.0%, and electricity generation by 1.3%.

On the other hand, crude oil and natural gas production declined by 1.1% and 1.5%, respectively.

The cumulative growth rate of the Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) during April-January 2024-25 stood at 4.4%, as against the corresponding period of the previous year. It was 7.8% in the same period last fiscal.

The final growth rate for October 2024 was revised to 3.8%. Data for November 2024, December 2024, and January 2025 remain provisional and are subject to revision based on updated information from source agencies, the statement added.

The government will release the core sector data for February 2025 on March 28.