Meanwhile, capital goods remained in contraction.“Factories benefited from a rebound in demand, and responded by scaling up production to the greatest extent since May. Moreover, the overall rate of inflation reached a 13-month high.The manufacturing indicator has come ahead of the government releasing the first advance estimates of economic growth for 2019-20 on January 7. India’s economy grew 4.5% in the July-September quarter, the slowest pace of expansion in over six years. The decline in growth was led by manufacturing, which saw a 1% contraction in gross value added against a 6.9% rise in the corresponding quarter last year.The survey report showed that buoyed by strengthening underlying demand, goods producers resumed their hiring efforts in December. The rise in employment reversed the fall noted in November and was the strongest since February.Despite the improvement in operating conditions during December, companies were cautious regarding the year-ahead outlook.

Source: Economic Times January 02, 2020 05:10 UTC