GDP growth rate falls to 6.4%

GDP growth rate falls to 6.4%
ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU

JUNE 30: The gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate during 1999-2000 decelerated to 6.4 per cent from 6.8 per cent in the previous financial year.

According to the revised estimates of annual national income and quarterly estimates of GDP released by Central Statistical Organisation (CSO) on Friday, the deceleration in the GDP has been mainly on account of poor showing by the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector. The growth rate of this sector during 1999-2000 was 1.3 per cent as compared to 7.2 per cent in the previous fiscal.

The CSO has revised the GDP growth rate for 1999-2000 to 6.4 per cent from 5.9 per cent estimated at the time of release of advance estimates mainly because of the robust performance of the manufacturing sector towards the close of the fiscal. Also the agriculture sector did not perform as badly as anticipated in the advance estimates. In the advance estimates, the CSO expected the agriculture sector to grow only by 0.8 per cent.

The revised growth rate in the manufacturing sector stood at 8.5 per cent during 1999-2000 compared to 7 per cent estimated earlier. In 1998-99, the manufacturing sector had posted a growth rate of 3.6 per cent.

Other sectors which contributed to the revised GDP growth rate included trade, hotels, transport and communication growing at 6.7 per cent compared to 5.9 per cent estimated earlier, construction at 9.1 per cent as against earlier estimates of 9 per cent.

However, growth rates in the sectors like electricity, gas and water supply and mining and quarrying were revised downward.

Growth rate in the electricity, gas and water supply sector was revised downward to 7.4 per cent from 8 per cent estimated earlier while in mining and quarrying it was revised to 0.3 per cent from 0.4 per cent earlier.

Financing, insurance, real estate and business services grew at 10.6 per cent (revised from 10.5 per cent estimated earlier) as against 6.1 per cent in the previous year, CSO release said.

The community, social and personal services posted a lower growth rate of 10 per cent (revised from 9.8 per cent) in 1999-2000 compared to 10.9 per cent growth achieved in the previous year.

Economic growth during the last quarter of 1999-2000 remained stagnant at 7.2 per cent.

The sectors which registered significant growth rates during January-March 2000 over the same period in 1999 included manufacturing at 10.5 per cent compared to 4.2 per cent and mining and quarrying at 2.4 per cent as against a negative 2.1 per cent. However, agriculture posted a negative growth rate of 1.3 per cent compared to 10.8 per cent last year.

The GDP growth rate at current prices was lower at 9.9 per cent during 1999-2000 as against 16.5 per cent in the previous year, CSO said.

The per capita income in real terms during 1999-2000 is estimated to attain a level of Rs 10,207 (as against Rs 10,151 estimated earlier) as compared to quick estimates for the year 1998-99 of Rs 9,739. The growth rate in per capita income is estimated at 4.8 per cent during 1999-2000 as against 5.0 per cent in the previous fiscal.