New Delhi: Declining for the second month in a row, the output of eight core industries contracted by 0.4 percent in April on poor performance of electricity, cement, refinery products and fertiliser sectors, bolstering the case for a rate cut by RBI tomorrow.
Coal and steel were only two sectors that saw some growth, while crude oil and natural gas also recorded lower output in April.
The output had declined by 0.1 percent in March 2015, while it had seen a growth of 5.7 percent a year ago in April 2014.
The latest core sector data came a day ahead of the RBI's scheduled monetary policy review where the central bank is widely expected to lower the rates to further boost the investment flow and the core sector output.
The overall growth of eight core industries in the entire 2014-15 fiscal stood at 3.5 percent against 4.2 percent in the previous fiscal.
The growth rate of core sector industries has been declining since November last year. It was 6.7 percent in November 2014, which fell to 2.4 percent in December 2014 and then to 1.8 percent in January and 1.4 percent in February.
The eight sectors contribute 38 percent to the overall industrial production, a parameter that the Reserve Bank takes into account while framing its monetary policy.
In April 2015, the output of crude oil declined by 2.7 percent, natural gas by 3.6 percent, electricity by 1.1 percent and cement by 2.4 percent. The production of refinery products too declined by 2.9 percent and fertiliser output shrunk by 0.04 percent.
Growth in steel output slowed down to 0.6 percent in April as against 6.9 percent in the same month last year. Coal production grew by 7.9 percent during the first month of 2015-16.
