GDP growth up to 7.7 per cent in Q4

New Delhi: Robust performance by manufacturing, construction and service sectors and good farm output pushed India’s January-March 2018 GDP growth to a seven-quarter high of 7.7 per cent, helping it retain the fastest growing major economy tag, government data showed Thursday.

India’s economic expansion at 7.7 per cent was significantly higher than China’s 6.8 per cent in the same January-March period.

On a yearly basis, however, the Indian economy grew at a four-year low of 6.7 per cent in 2017-18, down from 7.1 per cent in the previous fiscal, according to the data released on Thursday. The previous low was recorded in 2013-14 at 6.4 per cent.

The decline in the annual GDP growth has been mainly due to a dip in the manufacturing, agriculture and mining sectors.

“GDP at 2011-12 prices in the fourth quarter of 2017-18 registered growth rate of 7.7 per cent as against 5.6 per cent, 6.3 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively, in the first three quarters of 2017-18. Rapid growth in agriculture (4.5 per cent), manufacturing (9.1 per cent) and construction (11.5 per cent) contributed to the overall growth,” the Central Statistics Office said in its national accounts data.

The previous high GDP growth of 8.1 per cent was recorded in the April-June quarter of 2016-17. The GDP growth was 6.1 per cent in January-March 2016-17.

Commenting on the data, finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia said: “The constant increasing trend of quarterly GDP numbers in the four quarters of 2017-18 at 5.6 per cent, 6.3 per cent, 7 per cent and 7.7 per cent indicates that the structural measures of reforms undertaken by the government is now bringing rich dividends in the form of higher GDP growth rate.”

The gross value addition (GVA) for the January-March quarter expanded at 7.6 per cent, from 6 per cent a year ago, the data showed.

Manufacturing sector GVA grew at 9.1 per cent in fourth quarter, up from 6.1 per cent year ago. Similarly, construction sector GVA rose 11.5 per cent in the fourth quarter as compared to 3.9 per cent a year ago.

GVA growth of trade, hotels, transport and communications and services related to broadcasting grew at 6.8 per cent in the fourth quarter as compared to 5.5 per cent a year ago.

Similarly, financial, real estate and professional services GVA grew at a higher rate of 5 per cent in the quarter as compared to 1 per cent a year ago.

Mining and quarrying did not perform well in January-March as GVA of the segment grew at 2.7 per cent in the fourth quarter, down from 18.8 per cent a year ago.

Though the farm GVA output growth was well above the satisfactory mark of 4 per cent at 4.5 per cent in the fourth quarter, it was lower than 7.1 per cent a year ago.

Electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services GVA grew at 7.7 per cent in the fourth quarter, as compared to 8.1 per cent a year earlier.

Real GVA (at basic constant 2011-12 prices for 2017-18) is now estimated at Rs 119.76 lakh crores, showing a growth rate of 6.5 per cent over first revised estimates of GVA for 2016-17 of Rs 112.48 lakh crores. The GVA growth was 7.1 per cent in 2016-17.