The Hindu Business Line : Core sector grows 2.8% in May

New Delhi, June 30 A dip in the production of crude oil and refined petro-products notwithstanding, the index of six core infrastructure industries registered a growth of 2.8 per cent in May and 3.9 per cent for April-May 2009. This is against their corresponding last year levels of 3.1 per cent and 2.7 per cent, respectively.

The best performance came from cement and coal.

In May, the country produced 171.80 lakh tonnes (lt) of cement, 11.63 per cent more than the 153.90 lt in the same month of last year. For the first two months of the current fiscal, the output, at 345.20 lt, was up 11.68 per cent over the 309.10 lt in April-May 2008-09.

Likewise, coal production rose 10.21 per cent, from 363.3 lt in May 2008 to 400.4 lt in May 2009, and 11.78 per cent, from 713 lt in April-May 2008 to 797 lt in April-May 2009.

Electricity

Power generation, at 64,066.8 million units (kilowatt-hour) in May, was 3.29 per cent more than the 62,028.5 million units for the same month last year.

For the April-May period, the production of 127,055.3 million units (120,843.6 million units in the corresponding period last year) was 5.14 per cent higher.

Finished (carbon) steel output in May was estimated at 45 lt (44.39 lt), a 1.37 per cent increase. During the first two months of this fiscal, production, at 88 lt, was 2.08 per cent higher than the 86.21 lt in the year-ago period.

The steel industry, unlike cement, appears not to have benefited from the Centre’s stimulus package and efforts at boosting infrastructure spending.

Crude oil output down

Production of both crude oil and refined petro-products fell 4.3 per cent each during May — the former from 29.08 lt to 27.83 lt and the latter from 124.10 lt to 118.76 lt.

During April-May, the output of crude oil declined 3.72 per cent to 55.13 lt (57.26 lt), while that of refined products fell 4.38 per cent from 245.49 lt to 234.73 lt.

The dip in oil and petro-product production has been attributed to lower demand arising from the overall economic slowdown.

According to the Petroleum Ministry, consumption of diesel was down 1.3 per cent year-on-year in May, while being lower by 28.9 per cent in case of naphtha and 6.3 per cent for aviation turbine fuel.

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