India Core Industry Growth Hits Five-Month High in June

India's Index of Core Industries (ICI) grew 5% year-on-year in June 2026, reaching a five-month high. The growth was led by a 43.9% jump in iron ore production, alongside 9.8% increases in both electricity and cement. For the April-June 2026 quarter, cumulative growth rose to 3.6%, compared to 1% during the same period the previous year.

This data marks the first release of a revised ICI series by the Government of India, which replaces the 2011-12 base year with a 2022-23 base year. The updated index expands the core sector basket from eight to nine industries by adding iron ore. Methodological changes also include the use of gross production for the steel index and a limitation of the coal index to raw coal to prevent double counting.

Despite the overall gain, several sectors contracted, including natural gas (-7.4%), refinery products (-4.7%), crude oil (-4.2%), and fertilizers (-3.3%). Steel production grew by 4.6%. Analysts from Bank of Baroda attributed the growth to heatwaves increasing electricity demand and a combination of government and private spending. Conversely, ICRA Limited noted that growth was not broad-based, linking the decline in fertilizer output to ongoing tensions in West Asia.