Mumbai, Nov 2: Cost pressure and muted demand for certain products drove India’s manufacturing activity to an eight-month low of 55.5 in October as against an S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) of 57.5 a month back, data released on November 1 showed.According to the latest PMI report, growth eased in October due to competitive pressure and weak demand at some plants. Though there was further increase in new orders, the rate of expansion was the softest in a year, with consumer goods especially affected.
Growth of international sales though remained historically strong, the rise in October was the weakest in four months pointing at a loss in momentum, the report added.
However, the latest reading continues to be above the long-run average of 53.9 even as October saw the slowest rate of expansion since February.
“India’s manufacturing sector generated substantial growth in October, despite a challenging global economic environment. Still, insights from surveyed purchasing managers pointed to the deceleration of several measures,” Pollyanna De Lima, Economics Associate Director at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said.