Saga of Indian manufacturing sector here to stay

NEW DELHI: The saga of the Indian manufacturing sector is here to stay. Undoubtedly, all sectors, with the exception of some, are consistently performing better and are recording phenomenal growth rates. Looking at the growth being registered across, it is now almost certain that the Indian economy will experience robust growth on the back of a strong manufacturing growth, said Satish Kaura,  while releaseing the ASCON Survey today.

The ASCON survey carried out by Associations Council of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) for the period April-September 2006 indicates that the Indian manufacturing sector has once again registered remarkable results during the last six months

The survey showed that almost 65% of the the manufacturing sector continued its growth path and maintained the momentum built during the last quarter.

There is also a greater shift to the excellent and high growth categories as compared to the same period last year. These are results revealed by the CII Manufacturing - ASCON Survey for the period April - September 2006.

"The Indian economy is poised to reap the benefits that come with a strong manufacturing base in an economy. The relentless emphasis that Indian companies have placed on continuously enhancing design and engineering skills, building new capabilities for product and technology innovation and in leveraging resources from around the world to provide value to customers are contributing in transforming "Made in India" into a global brand", said Satish Kaura, Chairman, CII Industry Council, while releasing the results of theCII Manufacturing ASCON Survey for the period April-Spetember 2006.

"The manufacturing sector had recorded a growth of 9.1% in the 2005/06 fiscal, compared with 9.2 percent in the previous year. This is being further strengthened quarter on quarter during the current fiscal. The manufacturing sector seems set to enhancing its share in the GDP to the targeted 30%" said Dr Sarita Nagpal, Head Manufacturing Services Division, Confederation of Indian Industry

As per the survey, 65% of the 125 sectors tracked have reported production of high to excellent growth (i.e. 10 to 20% and more than 20%) over the period April to September 2006.

Of the total of 125 sectors reporting production, 34 sectors recorded an excellent growth rate of more than 20 percent, 47 sectors recorded a high growth rate of 10-20 percent, 31 sectors registered moderate growth rate of 0-10 percent. Sectors reporting negative growth are down to 14, as compared to 20 during the same period last year.

The survey also brings out that the consumer durables sector has scored more in the excellent growth category than the corresponding period last year.

Increasing Investor Confidence has further helped the Indian manufacturing sector to achieve spectacular growth. During the current financial year upto July 2006 India has received USD 2896, 92% higher than the USD 1510 received during the same period of the previous fiscal.

"Last year most FDI went into the manufacturing sector. The trend seems to be quite irreversible. For example last year the electrical equipment sector received 16.2% of the total FDI. During the current fiscal this sector has already received USD 524 million by July 2006, compared to USD 1451 million received during the entire year", says Satish Kaura.

"Both the manufacturing sector and the Indian government are taking steps to ensure that the sector achieves desired growth rate. CII has launched a number of initiatives to create an enabling environment for the manufacturing sector", says Dr. Nagpal.

© CIOL Bureau