At a crossroads
The United Kingdom’s economy has encountered a challenging phase, with consecutive monthly declines in GDP marking the first back-to-back contraction since the tumultuous days of the Covid-19 lockdowns.
The combined Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) increased by 4% (provisional) in June 2024 as compared to the Index in June 2023, Ministry of Commerce & Industry said on Tuesday.
The production of Coal, Electricity, Natural Gas, Steel, Fertilizer and Cement recorded positive growth in June 2024, it added. In May, the growth was 6.4%.
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The core sector expansion slid to a 20-month low, lowest since November 2022. The slide was led by a moderation in growth or deepening contraction in five of the eight constituents.
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During the April-June quarter of fiscal year 2024–25, output from these core sectors rose by 5.7%, down from 6% in the same period last fiscal year.
Coal production recorded the highest share with an increase by 14.8% in June 2024 over June 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 10.8% during April to June 2024-25 over the corresponding period of the previous year.
Electricity generation increased by 7.7% in June 2024 over June 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 10.5% during April to June 2024-25.
Natural Gas production increased by 3.3% in June 2024 over June 2023. Its cumulative index increased by 6.4% during April to June 2024-25.
Further, the steel production increased by 2.7% in June, and tts cumulative index increased by 6.1% during April to June 2024-25.
Fertilizer production increased by 2.4% in June with cumulative index remaining constant during April to June 2024-25.
The Cement production spiked by 1.9% in June with cumulative index increasing by 0.3% April to June 2024-25.
On the declining side in June was Crude Oil production by 2.6%, Petroleum Refinery production by 1.5%.
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