Punjab Dec 2, 2024(Navroze Bureau) – India’s manufacturing sector growth rate fell to an 11-month low of 56.5 in November. Growth remained limited due to competitive conditions and inflationary pressures amid slow growth in orders. This information was given in a monthly survey released on Monday. The seasonally adjusted ‘HSBC India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index’ (PMI) was 57.5 in October, which fell to an 11-month low of 56.5 in November.
Under PMI, an index above 50 means expansion in production activities while a figure below 50 indicates contraction. HSBC Chief Economist (India) Pranjul Bhandari said, “The growth rate of the manufacturing sector in India stood at 56.5 in November, which is slightly lower than the previous month, but is still in the expansion zone.” Bhandari said that strong broad-based international demand promoted the continued growth of the Indian manufacturing sector. However, at the same time, the rate of production expansion is slowing down due to rising price pressures.
On the domestic macroeconomic front, India’s economic growth rate declined to a nearly two-year low of 5.4 per cent in the July-September quarter of the current financial year 2024-25 due to poor performance of the manufacturing and mining sectors and weak consumption, according to the latest government data released on Friday.
On the price front, Indian commodity producers raised their selling prices the most since October 2013. “The rate of growth in international demand was the best in four months…Increases were reported from Bangladesh, China, Colombia, Iran, Italy, Japan, Nepal, the UK and the US…,” the survey said.
The HSBC India Manufacturing PMI is compiled by S&P Global based on responses to questionnaires sent to purchasing managers at a group of about 400 companies.