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Indian economy grows by 8.4 per cent in October-December 2023 against 4.3 per cent a year ago: Govt data

Steel production (weight: 17.92 per cent) increased by 7.0 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 13.1 per cent from April to January over the corresponding period of the previous year.

Petroleum refinery production (weight: 28.04 per cent) declined by 4.3 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 3.9 per cent from April to January over the corresponding period of the previous year.

Natural Gas production (weight: 6.88 per cent) increased by 5.5 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 5.6 per cent from April to January over the corresponding period of the previous year.

Fertilizer production (weight: 2.63 per cent) declined by 0.6 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 5.5 per cent from April to January over the corresponding period of the previous year.

Electricity generation (weight: 19.85 per cent) increased by 5.2 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 6.8 per cent from April to January over the corresponding period of the previous year.

Crude Oil production (weight: 8.98 per cent) increased by 0.7 per cent in January 2024 over January 2023. Its cumulative index declined by 0.2 per cent during April to January 2023-24 over the corresponding period of the previous year.

The Combined Index of Eight Core Industries increased by 3.6% (provisional) in January 2024 as compared to index of January 2023. The production of coal, steel, cement, natural gas, electricity and crude oil recorded positive growth in January 2024, according to government data.

Government bond yields ended marginally higher on Thursday, but posted a fourth consecutive monthly decline, as the fiscally prudent budget for the next financial year turned demand-supply dynamics favourable. The benchmark 10-year yield ended at 7.0764%, after closing at 7.0663% on Wednesday. The yield declined seven basis points in February, after falling 21 basis points in November-January.

India's infrastructure output in January rose 3.6% year on year, compared with a revised 4.9% in December, government data showed on Thursday.

The Union Cabinet on Thursday, February 29, approved the proposal to fix the Nutrient-Based Subsidy (NBS) rates for the Kharif season, 2024 from April 1 to September 30 on Phosphatic and Potassic (P&K) fertilisers and the inclusion of 3 new fertiliser grades under the NBS scheme.

The tentative budgetary requirement for Kharif season 2024 would be approximately R 24,420 crore, announced Union Minister Anurag Thakur during a press briefing in New Delhi.

The Union Cabinet on February 29 approved a rooftop solar scheme as 'PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana' to install rooftop solar panels across 10 million households with a total outlay of Rs 75,021 crore.

The decision was taken at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"Beneficiaries of the government's rooftop solar scheme– Pradhanmantri Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana – will get free electricity of up to 300 units per month," Anurag Thakur, Minister of Sports, Youth Affairs and Minister of Information and Broadcasting said on February 29.

"On a long-term basis, India is likely to deliver minimum 6% to 6.5% real GDP growth and 10% to 11% nominal GDP growth, significantly higher than comparable emerging market countries over the next two decades," said Kaushik Das, an economist at Deutsche Bank.

Despite slower growth, India is likely to retain its position as one of the world's fastest-growing economies with estimated growth of 7.3% estimated in the current fiscal year, the government's first advance estimate shows, amid a faltering China and a eurozone narrowly escaping a technical recession.

"Some moderation is expected in October-December GDP growth, with softer growth in manufacturing sector," said Gaura Sen Gupta, an economist at IDFC First Bank.

India is projected to have grown at 6.6% in the three months ending December 31, slowing from the 7.6% growth recorded in the previous quarter and 7.8% in the July quarter, according to a Reuters poll.

The Rupee ended little changed on Thursday, as Dollar demand from foreign and state-run banks eroded positive cues from an uptick in most Asian currencies, traders said.

India's fiscal deficit for ten months of the 2023/34 financial year was Rs 11.03 lakh crore, or 63.6% of the estimate for the whole year, government data showed on Thursday.

Union Cabinet under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday cleared proposal worth Rs 1.26 lakh crore for setting up three semiconductor plants by companies including Tata Group, Japan’s Renesaas and CG Power.

The blue-chip index NSE Nifty 50 added 0.14% to 21,982.80, while the BSE Sensex gained 0.27% to 72,500.30. Both benchmarks gained about 1% in February.