INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Activity in India's dominant services sector moderated in March after expanding the previous monthEconomic activity in India picked up
speed last month, signaling it was well on the road to recovery before a new wave of coronavirus infections derailed progress
The needle on a dial measuring so-called animal spirits moved a notch higher for the first time in six months in March, based on the
three-month weighted average numbers of eight high-frequency indicators tracked by Bloomberg News.While last month's score -- helped by
faster exports and improved liquidity -- cements a solid showing in the January to March quarter, fresh activity curbs amid the world's
market indicators pointed to a sharp slump in services activity in the week to April 25, Abhishek Gupta, India economist at Bloomberg
Economics, said in a note Wednesday.Here's more India data worth tracking in the days ahead:Goods and services tax data released by the
Finance Ministry around the first week of every month is a key indicator of consumption activitySurveys of purchasing managers by IHS
Markit, also out next week, will offer a glimpse of manufacturing and services activityAuto sales published by companies such as Maruti
on the first day of every month serve as an early indicator of demand, before industry-wide numbers are released by the Society of Indian
Automobile ManufacturersUnemployment rate for April from private research firm Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Pvt
will also be out early next week, serving as a window on the labor market in the absence of real-time official dataElectricity usage and
mobility trends from Google will also show real-time trends in consumption, a sector that makes up some 60% of the economyHere are the
details of the animal-spirits dashboard:Business ActivityActivity in India's dominant services sector moderated in March after expanding
the previous month at its quickest pace in a year
The IHS Markit India Services PMI eased to 54.6 from 55.3, with a reading above 50 signaling growth
A similar survey for the manufacturing sector also showed expansion moderating.Indian shipments abroad jumped in MarchPhoto Credit:
BloombergExportsExports grew more than 60% from a year ago, engineering goods, with gems and jewelery, drugs and pharmaceuticals, and
chemicals leading shipments
Merchandise imports too staged a smart rebound in March, growing by 53.7% from a year ago on the back of an uptick in domestic economic
activity.Consumer activityPhoto Credit: BloombergConsumer ActivityPassenger vehicle sales more than doubled from a year ago, rising to
291,000 units in March, according to SIAM data
Two-wheeler sales were at 1.5 million units, compared with 867,000 last year.That optimism was, however, was tempered by slowing demand for
Bank credit grew 5.6% in March from a year earlier, dropping from 6.6% in February, central bank data showed
Liquidity conditions improved a bit, with the banking system in surplus, despite advance tax outflows in the second half of
reflecting a slowdown across most sectors
The only bright spot was consumer durable goods, which recorded surprisingly strong growth, helped by a lower base.Output at infrastructure
industries, which makes up 40% of the industrial production index, also shrank 4.6% in February from a year ago, with a drop in cement
output leading the charge
Both data are published with a one-month lag.(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is
published from a syndicated feed.)
