India’s economy just had its best quarter in two years
India’s economy had its best quarter in two years in the three months ended in June, growing at a powerful 8.2 per cent.
The surge was fuelled by consumer spending and a strong manufacturing performance.
It is the country's highest performance in a quarter since the 9.3 per cent growth India experienced in the January-March quarter of 2016.
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The manufacturing sector grew by 13.5 per cent in June, having shrunk by 1.8 per cent in the same period a year previously, boosted by greater government spending and better rainfall that left households more money to spend on consumer items.
In the same quarter last year the Indian economy grew by 5.6 per cent.
Its expansion outstrips China’s 6.7 per cent growth in the same quarter.
India’s economy hit $2.6 trillion (£2 trillion) in 2017, overtaking France as the world’s sixth-largest economy and closing in on the UK, according to data from the World Bank.
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“This is probably the best GDP trend we have seen in the first half of the fiscal year,” said Shashank Mendiratta, India economist at ANZ Bank.
”Going ahead I expect growth to moderate as private investment is unlikely to grow at a faster rate due to stressed assets,” he added.