India's industrial output rises 1.5% year-on-year in June
Economists polled by Reuters projected a growth of 2%. Industrial output grew at a revised 1.9% year-on-year in May.
* Manufacturing output up 3.9% in June as compared to a revised growth of 3.2% in May
* Electricity generation fell 2.6% in June as against a revised drop of 4.7% a month earlier
* Mining activity dropped 8.7% in June as against a fall of 0.1% a month ago
* Output of consumer durables, including cards and phones, grew 2.9% in June as compared to a revised drop of 0.9% a month ago
* Output of consumer non-durables, such as food items and toiletries, fell 0.4% in June as compared to a revised drop of 1% in May
* Capital goods output increased 3.5% in June as compared to a revised increase of 13.3% in May
* Industrial output in April-June grew 2% as compared to a revised increase of 5.4% a year ago
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
16 minutes ago
- Reuters
Oil slips as OPEC+ proceeds with September output hike
SINGAPORE, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Oil prices extended declines on Monday after OPEC+ agreed to another large production hike in September, with concerns about a slowing economy in the U.S., the world's biggest oil user, adding to the pressure. Brent crude futures fell 40 cents, or 0.57%, to $69.27 a barrel by 0115 GMT while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $66.96 a barrel, down 37 cents, or 0.55%, after both contracts closed about $2 a barrel lower on Friday. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies, known as OPEC+, agreed on Sunday to raise oil production by 547,000 barrels per day for September, the latest in a series of accelerated output hikes to regain market share, citing a healthy economy and low stockpiles as reasons behind its decision. The move, in line with market expectations, marks a full and early reversal of OPEC+'s largest tranche of output cuts, plus a separate increase in output for the United Arab Emirates, amounting to about 2.5 million bpd, or about 2.4% of world demand. Analysts at Goldman Sachs expect that the actual increase in supply from the eight OPEC+ countries that have raised output since March will be 1.7 million bpd, or about 2/3 of what has been announced, because other members of the group have cut output after previously overproducing. "While OPEC+ policy remains flexible and the geopolitical outlook uncertain, we assume that OPEC+ keeps required production unchanged after September," they said in a note, adding that solid growth in non-OPEC output would likely leave little room for extra OPEC+ barrels. RBC Capital Markets analyst Helima Croft said: "The bet that the market could absorb the additional barrels seems to have paid off for the holders of spare capacity this summer, with prices not that far off from pre-tariff Liberation Day levels." Still, investors remain wary of further U.S. sanctions on Iran and Russia that could disrupt supplies. U.S. President Trump has threatened to impose 100% secondary tariffs on Russian crude buyers as he seeks to pressure Russia into halting its war in Ukraine. At least two vessels loaded with Russian oil bound for refiners in India have diverted to other destinations following new U.S. sanctions, trade sources said on Friday, and LSEG trade flows showed. However, two Indian government sources told Reuters on Saturday the country will keep purchasing oil from Russia despite Trump's threats. Concerns about U.S. tariffs impacting global economic growth and fuel consumption are also hanging over the market, especially after U.S. economic data on jobs growth on Friday was below expectations. U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Sunday that the tariffs imposed last week on scores of countries are likely to stay in place rather than be cut as part of continuing negotiations.
Reuters
16 minutes ago
- Reuters
Indian rupee seen under pressure on US tariff worries, RBI policy in focus
MUMBAI, Aug 4 (Reuters) - The rupee is likely to stay under pressure this week as concerns over steep U.S. tariffs on Indian exports linger, while the Reserve Bank of India's upcoming policy decision also looms large over the currency and government bonds. The rupee closed at 87.54 against the U.S. dollar on Friday, down 1.2% for the week, pressured by persistent foreign portfolio outflows and a 25% levy on Indian exports. While the local unit is hovering near its weakest level since February, fresh tariff announcements on dozens of U.S. trading partners also pushed other Asian currencies to multi-month lows. The dollar index, meanwhile, posted its best weekly gain since 2022 as expectations of a U.S. rate cut in September faded. The odds of a reduction in September rose to 80% after data released on Friday showed that the U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected, while the unemployment rate rose to 4.2%. Meanwhile, the maturity of a $5 billion dollar-rupee buy/sell swap conducted by the RBI earlier this year will be in focus on Monday. "It would be prudent to break the swap into delivery and rollover. The rupee has probably seen its worst for this quarter and some support will bring it to a desirable level, while not disturbing liquidity, said Alok Singh, group head of treasury at CSB Bank. Traders expect the rupee to trade between 87.00 and 87.80 this week and reckon that the central bank may continue to intervene to limit excessive volatility. Meanwhile, India's 10-year benchmark 6.33% 2035 bond yield , settled at 6.3680% last week, up 2 basis points (bps). Traders anticipate the yield will remain in the 6.33%-6.38% band till the RBI's policy decision on Wednesday. The range could be tested on either side, depending on policymakers' decision and guidance. Although some market participants expect a rate cut, a majority of economists polled by Reuters believe RBI will hold rates steady this time. "While it is a close call, our bias remains for a 25 bps rate cut at the August meeting," Citi said. A drop in India's retail inflation to a more-than-six-year low in June, coupled with expectations that it may slip to a record low in July, have heightened hopes of a rate cut. However, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra last month said that the bar for further easing is now higher than it would have been if the stance was still "accommodative". The central bank slashed rates by a steeper-than-expected 50 bps in June and shifted its policy stance to "neutral" from "accommodative". "As the RBI awaits the impact of the large easing it has already done, we believe it will stay put on repo rate changes on 6 August," HSBC said in a note. Key Factors: India ** July HSBC services PMI and composite PMI - August 5, Tuesday (10:30 a.m.) ** Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision - August 6, Wednesday (10:00 a.m.)(Reuters poll - no change) U.S. ** June factory orders - August 4, Monday (7:30 p.m. IST) ** June international trade - August 5, Tuesday (6:00 p.m. IST) ** July S&P Global composite PMI final - August 5, Tuesday (7:15 p.m. IST) ** July S&P Global services PMI final - August 5, Tuesday (7:15 p.m. IST) ** July ISM non-manufacturing PMI - August 5, Tuesday (7:30 p.m. IST) ** Initial weekly jobless claims for week to July 28 - August 7, Thursday (6:00 p.m. IST)
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
OPEC+ gets lucky as it brings back oil output amid uncertainty
LAUNCESTON, Australia, Aug 4 (Reuters) - A couple of months ago it would have been a brave call to say that OPEC+ would be able to bring back 2.5 million barrels per day of crude production and still keep oil prices anchored around $70 a barrel. But this is exactly what has occurred, with the eight members of the producer group winding back the last of their 2.2 million bpd of voluntary cuts by September, as well as allowing a separate increase for the United Arab Emirates. The eight OPEC+ members met virtually on Sunday, agreeing to lift output by 547,000 bpd for September, adding to the increases of 548,000 bpd for August, 411,000 bpd for each of May, June and July, as well as the 138,000 bpd for April that kickstarted the unwinding of their voluntary cuts. OPEC+ stuck to their recent line that the rolling back of production cuts was justified by a strong global economy and low oil inventories. It's debatable as to whether this is actually the case. Certainly, demand growth in the top-importing region of Asia has been lacklustre. Asia's oil imports were about 25.0 million bpd in July, down from 27.88 million bpd in June and the lowest monthly total since July last year, according to data compiled by LSEG Oil Research. While China, the world's biggest crude importer, has been increasing purchases in recent months, much of this is likely because of lower prices that prevailed when June- and July-arriving cargoes were arranged. It's also the case that China has likely been adding to its stockpiles at a rapid pace, and while it doesn't disclose inventories, the surplus of crude once refinery processing is subtracted from the total available from domestic output and imports was 1.06 million bpd over the first half of 2025. It appears more likely that OPEC+ has largely been fortunate in that it has been increasing output at a time of rising risks in the crude oil market, largely from geopolitical tensions. The brief conflict between Israel and Iran in June, which was later joined by the United States, did lead to an equally brief spike in crude prices, with benchmark Brent futures reaching a six-month high of $81.40 a barrel on June 23. The price has since eased back to trade around the $70 mark, with some early weakness in Asia on Monday seeing Brent drop to around $69.35. But the point is that the Israel-Iran conflict arrested a downtrend in oil prices that had been in place for much of the first half of the year. Crude prices have also been supported in recent days by U.S. President Donald Trump's threats of wide-ranging sanctions against buyers of Russian oil unless Moscow agrees to a ceasefire in its war with Ukraine. As with everything Trump, it pays to be cautious as to whether his actions will ultimately be as drastic as his threats. But it would also be foolhardy to assume that there will be no impact on crude supplies even if any eventual measures imposed by the United States are not as drastic as feared. There are effectively only two major buyers of Russian crude, India and China. Of these two, India is the far more exposed given its refiners export millions of barrels of refined products, many made with Russian oil. India imported 2.1 million bpd of Russian oil in June, according to data compiled by commodity analysts Kpler, which is the second-highest monthly total behind only 2.15 million bpd in May 2023. In recent months, India has been buying about 40% of its crude from Russia and if it were to replace that with other suppliers, it would have a severe impact on oil flows, at least initially. It's likely that a combination of Middle East, Africa and Americas exporters could make up for India's loss of Russian barrels, but this would tighten supplies considerably and likely keep prices higher. Whether Russia and its network of shadowy traders and shippers could once again work around sanctions remains to be seen, but even if they could, it would still take some time for them to get Russian crude through to buyers. For now, much remains up in the air and OPEC+ members are following a smart strategy in taking advantage of the uncertainty to bring their production back and rebuild market share. How long this play can work is the question. Even if Russian barrels do leave the market, it's also possible that demand growth disappoints in the second half as the impact of Trump's trade war becomes more apparent, cutting global trade and lowering economic growth. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis of everything from swap rates to soybeans. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, opens new tab and X, opens new tab. The views expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.
