Economy expands 7.8% in Q4, lifting FY24 growth to 8.2%
India's growth surged to 8.2% in FY24, riding a better-than-expected 7.8% expansion in the March quarter on the back of robust manufacturing, provisional estimates released on Friday showed, underscoring the country's status as the world's fastest-expanding major economy.
This is the highest annual growth since FY17, excluding the 9.7% post-Covid rebound in gross domestic product (GDP) in FY22 after the 5.8% contraction in FY21. The advance estimate released in February had pegged FY24 growth at 7.6%. Economists and government expect the high growth to continue though tepid private consumption remains a concern.
The data comes ahead of the final phase of polling on Saturday.
«Many high-frequency indicators indicate that the Indian economy continues to remain resilient and buoyant despite global challenges,» finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman posted on X.
Early Rate Cut Unlikely
Investment as a ratio of nominal GDP rose to a decadal high of 30.8% in FY24.
Sequentially, the fourth quarter was the slowest in the year, slipping from 8.6% in the December quarter, but came in well ahead of the 6.8% median forecast in an ET poll.
GDP growth was 8.2% in the June quarter and 8.1% in the July-September period.
Gross value-added (GVA) growth was 7.2% in FY24, a full percentage point below GDP, suggesting that net taxes contributed heavily to the acceleration.
«India's growth continues to surprise on the upside,» said Crisil chief economist DK Joshi, adding that «domestic strengths and policy focus have put the
