India's industrial growth slows to 1.9 per cent in September 2011

New Delhi, Nov 11 (PTI) Continuing its dismal performance, India's industrial growth fell further to 1.9 per cent in September 2011, mainly due to poor output from the manufacturing sector, as per the latest official industrial growth data released here today. Growth in factory output, as measured in terms of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), had stood at 6.1 per cent in September last year. Output of the manufacturing sector, which constitutes over 75 per cent of the index, grew by only 2.1 per cent in September, compared to 6.9 per cent expansion in the same month last year. Mining output declined by (-)5.6 per cent in September this year, as against a growth of 4.3 per cent in the same month last year. However, electricity production improved, witnessing a growth of 9 per cent in September this year, as against growth of a mere 1.8 per cent in September, 2010. Growth in industrial output in the first half of the current 2011-12 fiscal (April-September) also witnessed a marked slow down to 5 per cent in from 8.2 per cent in the corresponding period last fiscal. Mining output dipped to (-)1 per cent compared to 7.2 per cent. Growth in manufacturing output slowed to 5.4 per cent from 8.8 per cent. But electricity production registered a robust growth of 9.4 per cent in comparison to 3.8 per cent in the same period a year ago. The fall in the industrial production numbers, as shown by the latest data, suggests continued sluggishness in the economy, experts said. India Inc had attributed the slowdown to rising interest rates, which have led to an increase in the cost of borrowing, thus hindering fresh investment. India's central Bank the Reserve Bank of India has hiked interest rates 13 times since March, 2010, to tame inflation. Headline inflation has been above the 9 per cent-mark since December last year and stood at a 13-month high of 9.78 per cent in August before moderating slightly to 9.72 per cent in September. PTI