Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) data for April indicated that softer increase in new orders has restricted growth of output, employment and business sentiment. The index declined to 51.8 last month, from 52.6 in March, reflecting the weakest improvement in business conditions since August 2018. While inflation eased to a 43-month low, there were concerns about a potential spike if crude oil prices remained high or moved up further. Though the PMI remained in the expansion territory (in PMI parlance, anything above 50 means expansion), growth continued to soften. What is more, the employment increased at the weakest pace for over a year, suggesting that producers are hardly gearing up for a rebound.

Source: dna May 03, 2019 00:11 UTC