December Industrial Output Contracts 1.3%

India's industrial output contracted an annual 1.3 percent in December, government data showed on Friday (12 February).

Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecast output would shrink 0.1 percent compared with a 3.2 percent year-on-year fall in November.

Friday's data comes days after the economy posted growth of 7.3 per cent in the quarter through December, faster than the 6.8 per cent growth posted by China in the same quarter.

The data had shown consumption outpacing investments, signalling potential inflationary risks.

Industrial output data further underscored that risk as capital goods production, a proxy for investments, fell nearly 20 per cent year-on-year in December. Consumer goods, a gauge for consumer spending, grew 2.8 per cent.

(Reuters)