The Hindu : Oil refining, steel spur infrastructure growth

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jan 22, 2004

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Oil refining, steel spur infrastructure growth

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JAN. 21. The infrastructure sector picked up in December with a growth of 5.9 per cent largely due to a spurt in the oil refining and steel industries. The overall growth for the April- December (2003) period, however, remains at 4.5 per cent with crude petroleum output dragging down the overall index.

According to the latest data released today by the Union Industry Ministry, the oil refining sector showed a rise of 9.3 per cent but this was on a low base of a negative 7.1 per cent in the same month last year. Finished steel production rose by 7.5 per cent during the month as compared to 8.1 per cent while coal output rose by 6.1 per cent and cement by 5.5 per cent against 6.8 and 16.2 per cent respectively last year.

Electricity generation showed better performance than last year with growth at 4.8 per cent against 2.8 per cent previously.

The overall growth of the six key infrastructure industries was 5.9 per cent against 4.4 per cent in the same month last year.

The 4.5 per cent growth for the first three quarters of the current fiscal (April-December 2003) was, in contrast lower than the 6 per cent recorded over the same period last year.

The data show that but for crude oil production, all other sectors showed positive growth in the first nine months of the current fiscal.

Crude output showed a negative 0.1 per cent growth as compared to 3.6 per cent in the corresponding period last year.

Petroleum refinery production improved to 7.2 per cent from 3.6 per cent in 2002 but the growth rate in coal at 3.7 per cent, electricity at 3.4 per cent, cement at 5.6 per cent and finished steel at 7 per cent were lower than the previous year.

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