Close to 6% growth on manufacturing picking up in Jan-Mar: Rangarajan

Economy is likely to grow by close to 6 per cent this financial year on manufacturing picking up in January-March period as a result of recent government decisions, PMEAC Chairman C Rangarajan said here today.

On projections for the next financial year, he said: "I expect 2013-14 to be better than 2012-13 for several reasons, plus the change in investment sentiment. The full impact (of recent government decisions) will only be seen in the course of next year which can result in private investment activities picking up."

Rangarajan was speaking at the Chamber Day celebrations of Hindustan Chamber of Commerce.

"We really need to see that manufacturing sector needs to pick up and I believe that actions and decisions taken by the government recently have started showing a change in investment sentiment. Therefore, in the (current) three months – January, February and March – I believe manufacturing will pick up and we will get a growth rate close to 6 per cent this year," he said.

According index of industrial production (IIP) data, manufacturing sector grew just 0.3 per cent in November 2012. The output of the key sector remained low at one per cent in April-November last year as against 4.2 per cent growth in the same period of the previous year.

Rangarajan's forecast on growth follows Reserve Bank trimming its projection for the current fiscal to 5.5 per cent from 5.8 per cent estimated earlier in the monetary policy review on January 29.

On the current account deficit, the chief of Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) told reporters that CAD should remain more or less of same level of last year level due to high import of gold, coal and oil.

"It should be around this figure. Somewhere around 5 per cent or may be slightly higher. The fact is that Indian economy is growing at fast rate, and the other economy are growing at lower rate. Therefore, our exports ... are affected because of their lower growth.

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