India’s Core sector output contracts by record 38.1% in April

New Delhi: The output of eight core infrastructure industries declined by a record 38.1 per cent in April due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown, according to the official data.

“The growth rate of Index of Eight Core Industries for April 2020 declined by 38.1% (provisional) compared to decline of 9 percent (provisional) previous month of March 2020. In view of nationwide lockdownduring April 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic, various industries viz. Coal, Cement, Steel, Natural Gas, Refinery, Crude Oil etc experienced substantial loss of production,” an official release said.

The eight core sectors had expanded by 5.2 per cent in April 2019, the data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Friday showed.

Final growth rate of Index of Eight Core Industries for January 2020 remains unchanged at 2.2%, it added.

The Eight Core Industries comprise 40.27 per cent of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).