India’s nine core industries expanded 7.9% from a year earlier in September, provisional government figures showed, with sharp gains in iron ore and electricity while fertilizer, natural gas and crude oil production fell.
Growth accelerated from August’s final 5.9% rate. The Ministry of Commerce & Industry revised August’s figure up from an initial 4.8%, raising that month’s index reading to 120.4 from 119.2. September’s index stood at 118.3, compared with 109.6 a year earlier.
Iron ore output rose 18.4%, the largest percentage gain among the nine industries. Electricity production increased 11.4% and coal output grew 10.7%. Refinery products rose 10.3%, cement 9.8% and steel 4.9%. The ministry identified coal, refinery products, steel and iron ore as important sources of index growth in recent months.
Three industries contracted in September. Fertilizer output fell 11.7%, natural gas declined 4.6% and crude oil slipped 1.4%. The mixed results show that the faster overall annual growth rate did not extend to every part of the index.
For April through September, the index grew a provisional 5.1%, compared with 2.5% in the same period of 2025. September’s figures remain subject to revision, as the change to August’s reading illustrates.
The government revised the index in July, changing its base year from 2011-12 to 2022-23 and adding iron ore as a ninth industry. The ministry linked the addition to iron ore’s role as an input for other industries. The revised series also uses gross steel production data and counts only raw coal to avoid double counting.
Mint reported that Aditi Nayar, chief economist at Icra Ltd., attributed part of the annual gains in coal and iron ore to weak year-earlier comparisons. She also pointed to an increase in coal output from August while stocks at power plants were low.
The ministry has scheduled its provisional October index for Nov. 20.
