India’s eight core infrastructure sectors registered a growth rate of 4 per cent in January 2026, easing from a revised 4.7 per cent in December and 5.1 per cent in January of the previous year.
The Index of Eight Core Industries (ICI) which tracks activity across eight sectors, including cement, steel, electricity, crude oil, coal, natural gas, fertilisers, and accounts for 40 per cent of the country’s industrial production.
Crude oil production declined by 5.8 per cent while natural gas production fell by 5 per cent compared to January 2025, dragging down the overall expansion of industries.
The moderation reflects continued weakness in energy-related sectors even as steel, cement and electricity maintained positive momentum.
Cement and steel emerged as the top-performing sectors, signalling strong construction and industrial demand.
Cement production surged by 10.7 per cent, steel production increased by 9.9 per cent, electricity rose by 3.8 per cent, fertiliser production increased by 3.7 per cent, and coal production increased by 3.1 per cent during the month.
Petroleum refinery products remained unchanged at a provisional index of 147.2 compared to the same month last year.
Economists attributed the robust growth in these materials to ongoing government infrastructure investments and housing activity.
The cumulative growth rate during April to January 2025-26 stands at 2.8 per cent provisional, compared to 4.5 per cent in the corresponding period last year.
Crude oil’s cumulative index declined by 2.1 per cent during April to January 2025-26 over the corresponding period of the previous year, whilst natural gas’s cumulative index declined by 3.4 per cent during the same period.
The data represents a transition from broad-based recovery to sectoral divergence, where heavy infrastructure is outpacing energy extraction industries.
