Production of coal, crude oil,
natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity
contracted.
The record contraction in
the growth rate of eight core sectors will affect the Index of Industrial
Production.
The
output of eight core infrastructure industries plunged by a record 38.1 per
cent in April as the nationwide lockdown to contain coronavirus pandemic caused
a substantial loss of production across sectors.
The production of
coal, natural gas, refinery products, steel, cement and electricity contracted
in double digits in the month, according to official data released on Friday.
The eight core sectors had
expanded by 5.2 per cent in April 2019 while in March 2020 the sectors had
contracted by 9 per cent.
"In view of nationwide
lockdown during April 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic, various industries - coal,
cement, steel, natural gas, refinery, crude oil etc experienced substantial
loss of production," the commerce and industry ministry said in a
statement.
Production of coal, crude
oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertiliser, steel, cement and electricity
contracted by 15.5 per cent, 6.4 per cent, 19.9 per cent, 24.2 per cent, 4.5
per cent, 83.9 per cent, 86 per cent, 22.8 per cent, respectively.
During 2019-20, core
industries recorded 0.6 per cent growth against 4.4 per cent in 2018-19.
The record contraction in
the growth rate of eight core sectors will affect the Index of Industrial
Production (IIP).
These sectors account for
about 40.27 per cent of the IIP.
Commenting on the numbers,
Icra vice-president Aditi Nayar said while the lockdown contributed to a
broad-based contraction across eight core sectors, it had a differential impact
on the extent to which activity was curtailed in the various constituents.
"While data on
automobile production has not been explicitly released for April 2020, the
output is likely to have been close to zero as most plants were shut for a
large part of the month during the lockdown," Nayar said.
"Based on the
available trends, we anticipate a contraction of 75-80 per cent in industrial
output in April 2020, led by a collapse in manufacturing volumes of
non-essential items amid the lockdown, moderate decline in electricity demand
and a relatively insulated mining sector," she added.
The outbreak of the virus
has also impacted the country's exports growth, which dipped by a record low of
60.28 per cent in April.
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