Key infrastructure industries registered a sluggish growth of 3.9 percent in 
July that experts say may come in the way of double-digit expansion in overall industrial output.
The six core industries — crude oil, petroleum refinery products, coal, electricity, cement and finished steel — had registered a 3.6 percent growth in June this year.
The growth rate was 3.2 percent in July, 2009, data released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on Friday said.
The growth of the core infrastructure industries has an impact on industrial growth, as they contribute over one- fourth to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
The growth of these six industries in July is far less than the 5 percent and 5.4 percent growth rate achieved in May and April, respectively.
This translates into an average growth of 4.5 percent during the first four months of this fiscal as against 4 percent in April-July, 2009-10.
While crude oil and petroleum refinery output witnessed high growth in July, production of cement and finished steel dipped, the data showed.
Crude oil production grew by 15.8 percent in July, while refinery output expanded by 13.7 percent.
However, cement production contracted by 0.2 percent and finished steel output by 0.9 percent year-on-year.
Coal output slowed to 4.5 percent against a robust growth of 10.5 percent in July, 2009.
Electricity generation grew by 3.8 percent in July, 2010, the same rate as the corresponding month of the previous year.
“This (core sector data) number would have an impact on the IIP of July… I think it would remain at 8-9 per cent,” Crisil Principal Economist D K Joshi said.
During the April-July period, crude oil, petroleum refinery products and cement production registered a growth of 8.4 percent, 7.3 percent and 5.2 percent, respectively.
Growth in crude oil and refinery products had contracted in the same period last year, though cement output was up 12.5 percent.
