Manufacturing loses pace in November, at 3-month low

New Delhi, December 1

India’s manufacturing sector activity lost momentum and fell to a three-month low in November amid slower increase in factory orders, exports and buying levels, a monthly survey said on Tuesday.

The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell from 58.9 in October to a three-month low of 56.3 in November, indicating that the manufacturing sector growth remained strong, despite losing traction. In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction.

“The Indian manufacturing sector remained on the right path to recovery, with strong growth of new orders and output sustained during November,” Pollyanna De Lima, Economics Associate Director at IHS Markit, said.

As per the survey, aggregate new orders rose at the slowest pace in three months. The companies indicated that sales growth was underpinned by resilient demand, though curbed by the Covid pandemic, it added. — PTI

Input and output charges increase

• The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell from 58.9 in October to a three-month low of 56.3 in November
• In PMI parlance, a print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction
• On the price front, input costs and output charges rose at accelerated rates that nevertheless remained below their respective long-run averages