February IIP contracts 3.6%; retail inflation rises to 5.5% in March

The manufacturing sector output contraced by 3.7 per cent in February, while the mining output declined by 5.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the power generation grew by 0.1 per cent

Economic data released on Monday showed that the restrictions and sporadic lockdowns in response to the fresh wave of coronavirus infections started impacting the overall demand and growth.

The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) contracted 3.6 per cent for February 2021, mainly on account of a steep contraction in the manufacturing output, showed data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).

The factory output had contracted by 1.6 per cent in the previous month (January 2021) and expanded to 4.5 per cent in February 2020.

The manufacturing sector output contraced by 3.7 per cent in February, while