The Ministry of Commerce & Industry released the Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) for April 2025, showing a modest increase of 0.5 percent compared to April 2024. This growth was primarily driven by positive production trends in cement, coal, steel, electricity, and natural gas.
The ICI tracks the performance of eight major infrastructure sectors—coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery products, fertilisers, steel, cement, and electricity. Together, these industries account for 40.27 percent of the overall Index of Industrial Production (IIP), making the ICI a key indicator of the country’s industrial health.
The final growth rate for the index in January 2025 was recorded at 5.1 percent. For the full financial year from April 2024 to March 2025, the cumulative growth rate stood at 4.5 percent on a provisional basis, reflecting steady momentum in core sectors on a Year-on-Year basis.
Coal production in April 2025 rose by 3.5 percent over the same month last year, contributing to a cumulative annual increase of 5.1 percent. Crude oil production, however, declined by 2.8 percent in April and saw a cumulative drop of 2.2 percent for the year. Natural gas showed a slight uptick of 0.4 percent in April, although its overall annual output decreased by 1.2 percent.
Petroleum refinery output fell sharply by 4.5 percent in April but still managed a cumulative growth of 2.8 percent for the year. Fertiliser production also declined by 4.2 percent in April, though its annual growth was up by 2.9 percent.
Steel production increased by 3.0 percent in April, with a strong cumulative rise of 6.9 percent over the financial year. Cement posted the highest monthly growth at 6.7 percent, while its yearly output rose by 6.3 percent. Electricity generation also improved, rising 1.0 percent in April and showing a cumulative growth of 5.2 percent over the year.
Overall, while monthly growth in April was subdued, the cumulative figures indicate a broadly positive performance in India’s core industrial sectors for the financial year 2024-25.
Cover photo: www.pexels.com
