New Delhi :Growing at the slowest rate in five months, industrial output grew by 4.4% in March, which industry attributed to lack of appetite for investment.
Industrial growth for the month was impacted due to a fall in capital goods production and deceleration in mining activity. Capital goods output declined by 1.8% during March as compared to a growth of 9.4% in the corresponding period last year.
Industry said impact of highly leveraged balance sheets is being felt. Assocham secretary general DS Rawat said the the IIP data for March throws a disconcerting fact about lack of appetite for investment, amplified by negative growth in the capital goods.
“The over-hang of high leverage in the industry as also squeezed balance sheets of the banks are visible from the IIP data”, he added.
Industrial growth measured by the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) in 2017-18 too decelerated to 4.3% from 4.6% in the previous fiscal.
