By Nikunj Ohri
NEW DELHI Reuters) – India’s economy grew by 6.2% in October-December, marginally below expectations but faster than in the previous quarter on the back of increased government and consumer spending, data released on Friday showed.
The growth in gross domestic product was slightly lower than the 6.3% expansion projected by analysts in a Reuters poll, and the central bank’s estimate of 6.8%. The world’s fifth-biggest economy grew 5.6% in the previous quarter.
The gross value added (GVA), a measure of economic activity which is seen as a more stable measure of growth, grew 6.2% in October-December, compared to a revised 5.8% expansion in the previous quarter.
Government spending rose 8.3% in the last three months of 2024 from a modest 3.8% increase in the previous three months.
Private consumer spending jumped 6.9% year-on-year, up from 5.9% in the previous quarter, buoyed by improved rural demand due to moderating food prices and more spending on purchases for the festival season than a year earlier.
The government raised its full-year growth forecast slightly on Friday, estimating the economy will grow 6.5% in the financial year ending March 31, against a previous projection of 6.4%.
To boost the economy, India’s central bank in February announced a rate cut for the first time in nearly five years.
The monetary policy committee’s deliberations left the door open for further rate cuts with most members focused on supporting growth as inflation, which fell to 4.3% in January, eases. (This story has been corrected to change the revised GDP growth for July-September to 5.6%, not 5.8%, in paragraph 2)
(Reporting by Nikunj Ohri; Editing by Susan Fenton)
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