New Delhi: India's core sector output growth accelerated to 7.9% in September, the fastest pace in the new series, from a revised 5.9% in August, supported by strong growth in iron ore, electricity, coal and refinery products, according to provisional data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Wednesday.

Source: Mint

The Index of Core Industries grew 7.9% year-on-year in September, compared with 3.1% in the same month last year. The overall index stood at 118.3 in September, compared with 109.6 a year earlier, ANI reported.

Source: ANI via Devdiscourse

7.9%Core industries growth, September
18.4%Iron ore output growth
11.4%Electricity growth
10.7%Coal growth

Six sectors grew, three contracted

Iron ore production recorded the highest growth at 18.4% year-on-year in September, followed by electricity at 11.4% and coal at 10.7%. Refinery products grew 10.3%, cement output increased 9.8%, and steel production rose 4.9%. In contrast, fertiliser production declined 11.7%, natural gas output contracted 4.6% and crude oil production fell 1.4%.

August's index was revised upwards to 120.4 from the provisional estimate of 119.2, taking its year-on-year growth to 5.9% from the earlier 4.8%. Cumulative growth during April-September 2026 stood at 5.1%, more than double the 2.5% recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.

“The uptick was broad-based, with seven of the nine sectors, barring electricity and cement, recording an improvement in their performance in September 2026 vis-à-vis August,” said Aditi Nayar, chief economist at Icra Ltd, as reported by Mint. The September figures are provisional, and the ministry said the index for October is scheduled to be released on November 20.