Industrial production in January is likely to improve on the back of better-than-expected performance in automobiles, steel and cement, senior government official said today.
"There is positive news in January numbers," Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Ajay Shankar said here.
Though automobile sales in January, 2009, fell by seven per cent over a year ago, Shankar said "from the auto sector, the numbers are much better than expected".
He said the performance in steel and cement is also not as disappointing as was feared.
The government will release data on industrial output for December 2008-09 on February 12. The January figures will be officially released a month later.
Reeling under global downturn, India's industrial production grew by mere 2.4 per cent in November and 3.9 per cent for the April-November period.
Indicating more stimulus measures in the interim budget on February 16, Shankar said government sops have been announced in the current fiscal to revive demand in 2009-10.
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